Single occasion drinking
The Chief Medical Officers’ advice for men and women who want to keep their short term health risks from single occasion drinking to a low level is to reduce them by:
- Limiting the total amount of alcohol you drink on any single occasion
- Drinking more slowly, drinking with food, and alternating with water
- Planning ahead to avoid problems; an example of planning ahead is making sure you can get home safely or that you have people you trust with you
The sorts of things that are more likely to happen if you misjudge your overall alcohol intake on a single occasion can include:
- Accidents resulting in injury; causing death in some cases
- Misjudging risky situations
- Losing self-control (for example, engaging in unprotected sex)
Certain groups of people are more likely to be affected by alcohol and should be more careful of their drinking on any one occasion. These can include those at risk of falls, on medication that may interact with alcohol or those with any pre-existing physical and mental health problems which could be exacerbated.
If you regularly drink on a weekly basis and wish to minimise both the short and long term risks to your health, this single occasion drinking advice is also relevant for you.
