Tips to help reduce your alcohol intake

Every year The Salvation Army hosts Alcohol Awarness Week, an initiative to stimulate discussion about the impact of alcohol use.

It’s an opportunity for people to consider their drinking choices and the impact this is having on themselves, their friends, families, children and communities.

We’d love to encourage and empower people to make smart choices in relation to drinking.

About one in four people drink above the recommended alcohol intake level, ie two standard drinks per day. Drinking above the recommended amount can have negative effects on your health.

If you choose to drink alcohol, here are some tips for controlling the amount you drink when you go out.

1. Quench your thirst with a non-alcoholic drink.
2. Experiment with the wide array of non or low-alcohol alternatives available.
3. Drink slowly.
4. Be careful about confusing large serves of alcohol with standard measures – eg. Glasses of wine may be much larger than the standard 120ml.
5. Try not to get involved in ‘shouts’, as this tends to force you to keep up with the pace of those around you.
6. Eat before and during drinking.
7. Avoid salty foods, these make you thirsty.
8. Don’t let people top up your drink until it’s finished – it’s too easy to lose track of how much you are drinking.
9. Try alternating alcoholic drinks with non-alcoholic drinks.
10. Drink water between alcoholic drinks.
11. Don’t allow yourself to get bored. Dance or have a game of pool if you’re at a pub.
12. Have alcohol-free days.
13. Don’t be pressured into drinking more than you want to.