Give up the daily drink
Monday January 9th, 2012
Drinkers should cease believing that a daily drink is safe, MPs and senior doctors warned today.
The public
should be advised to take at least two days a week off drinking, according
to the report from the UK House of Commons Science and Technology committee.
Current British guidelines set weekly limits for drinking for men and women - but this is often interpreted as a daily limit, roughly equivalent to three drinks a day for men and two for women.
But experts say there is increasing evidence that a daily drink is more harmful than drinking a little more less often.
The Royal College of Physicians said it was also important that most of the weekly ration was not taken in "binges".
The committee report also gives a warning to the British government that its current approach - of seeking voluntary agreements with the alcohol industry - may not be effective.
The MPs say the public should be told to take at least two alcohol-free days a week - and that current advice "seems to endorse daily drinking."
Professor Sir Ian Gilmore, adviser to the Royal College of Physicians of London, UK, backed the proposals.
He said: "There is an increased risk of liver disease for those who drink daily or near daily compared with those who drink periodically or intermittently.
"We currently recommend consumption is limited to between nought to 21 units a week for men and nought to 14 units a week for women - provided the total amount is not taken in binges and that there are two to three alcohol free days a week.
"At these levels, most individuals are unlikely to come to harm."
Tags: Drug and Alcohol Abuse | Internal Medicine | UK News
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