What does healthy drinking look like?

Some people can drink healthily in moderation. They go out and have a good time or have a drink occasionally. While for others no amount of drinking is healthy. Drinking negatively impacts their well-being, relationships, and even their daily lives.

If you are asking yourself, what does healthy drinking look like, then there are a few factors you might want to take into consideration.

Know the facts

Defined by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), drinking in moderation is limiting your consumption of alcoholic beverages to two or less a day for men. And one or less a day for women [1].

It’s important to know that one drink refers to a specific amount of alcohol. For example, one drink of wine is five ounces. So depending on the size of the glass, filling up a wine glass to the brim could count as two, three, or even four drinks. Here is what counts as one drink [1]:

• Twelve ounces of beer
• Eight ounces of malt liquor
• Five ounces of wine
• One and a half ounces of distilled spirits like rum, gin, vodka, etc.

To define healthy drinking habits and healthy limits, let’s look at what the CDC says about excessive alcohol consumption.[1]

• Binge drinking is four or more drinks per occasion for women and five or more for men
• Heavy drinking is eight or more drinks per week for women or 15 per week for men
• High-risk drinking is more than 15 per occasion for men and more than 8 per occasion for women
• Any drinking by underage or pregnant individuals is considered excessive

Everyone is different, but you must know your body and mind well and be in touch with your personal limitations. This is not a one-size-fits-all. It has a lot to do with how well you can handle alcoholic beverages. 

Think about physical and mental health conditions

It’s important if you have health concerns to make sure that having alcoholic beverages will not interfere with these conditions. Substance use disorders and other physical and mental conditions can be hereditary and impact what healthy drinking looks like for you.

Some physical and mental health conditions are affected by alcohol. For example, for someone with diabetes, consuming alcohol can cause their blood sugar levels to skyrocket. There are also certain medications that people take for physical and mental health conditions that can cause a severe reaction or side effects if you drink with the medication. Being mindful of these circumstances is vital for your overall well-being.

Be honest about your drinking

Looking at ourselves is crucial to make sure we’re taking care of our bodies and our mental health. Asking yourself questions about why you are drinking is an important step in recognizing if your drinking is becoming unhealthy.

These questions can help you decide if your drinking is healthy:

Why am I drinking?

• Am I drinking to manage emotions or avoid dealing with any emotions I’m experiencing? Am I drinking out of habit?
• Am I drinking to cover up a hangover or deal with withdrawal symptoms?

Are there others involved with my drinking?

• Am I drinking because I feel pressured to drink by the people around me?
• Have others mentioned my drinking? Are they worried? If I asked them about it, what would they say?

Does my drinking feel out of control?

• Am I not eating properly or changing eating habits to drink later?
• Do I find myself having more drinks than I expected or losing track of my drinking?
• Has drinking led to work, school, relationships, or legal troubles like DUIs? 

Self-medicating is another sign of unhealthy drinking. It’s when you drink to cover up or avoid feelings that may or may be unpleasant to you, like anxiety, anger, pain, fear, etc. Instead of facing and addressing your emotions, you may be using alcohol to numb your feelings so you don’t have to feel them at all. But this doesn’t mean that those aren’t there or that they will just go away.

If after reviewing the questions above you think that you may not be healthy, consider taking an addiction test. This can help you look at your drinking habits and think about your next steps.

 
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