The (Drinking) Limit Does Exist

Everyone has different drinking limits. Yes, there are recommended guidelines, but your limit might be lower than the recommendation. That’s because everyone’s body processes alcohol differently based on personal factors such as age, weight, gender or a family history of alcohol use problems. To understand your drinking limit, let’s start by learning the recommended limits.

Moderate drinking is defined as:

• For women, up to 1 or fewer drinks per day or 7 drinks per week
• For men, up to 2 or fewer drinks per day or 14 drinks per week

You might be thinking, ‘hold up, literally everyone drinks more than that.’ Yes – deciding to drink can be a slippery slope. We’ve seen the memes of a movie night turning into one drink which ends with waking up in the bathroom the next morning.

Ok, so what is too much so that I don’t get to that level?

What you want to avoid is excessive drinking. Excessive drinking is the overall category that includes binge drinking, heavy drinking, drinking alcohol underage and drinking while pregnant – and it’s no joke. A 2012 study reported 3.3 million global deaths from drinking alcohol and found that more than 10 percent of U.S. children live with a parent with alcohol problems.

What if it’s hard to stay within my limit?

You or someone you may know might currently struggle or have struggled in the past with drinking limits. If so, you’ll know that once you have that first drink, it’s hard to stop. If you go out and expect to be tempted by alcohol, be prepared. Confide in a buddy or two beforehand so that they can support you in not having that first drink – that way you can enjoy your night the way you want.

Ok that’s serious stuff – so where do I go from here? Find out how to hit the town the right way so that you can have a lit night while owning your limit!