UK guidelines on healthy drinking are ignored by most people as "irrelevant", researchers say today.
The guidelines give advice on daily drinking – but most people only drink at weekends, researchers found.
At weekends they may drink heavily – but still stay well within their weekly limit.
The researchers say the UK should study guidance in Australia and Canada, where advice is given for occasional drinking.
The findings come from studies conducted at the universities of Sheffield and Stirling, using focus groups, and are reported in the journal Addiction.
Researchers found the main brakes on drinking were responsibilities and lifestyle – such as having to worry about child care.
British guidelines say men should not drink more than three or four units of alcohol a day and women should not go past two or three.
Researcher Melanie Lovatt, from Sheffield, said: “These findings not only help to explain why some drinkers disregard current guidelines, but also show that people make decisions about their drinking by considering their responsibilities and lifestyle, rather than just their health.”
Addiction 5 August 2015
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