Tough new guidelines issued on alcohol have cut recommended drinking limits and say there is no such thing as a safe level of drinking.

Drinkaware has welcomed the clarity of the new alcohol guidelines being announced today by the UK’s Chief Medical Officers (CMO) following their review of evidence on the links between alcohol and health harms. Under the Chief Medical Officer’s updated guidelines men and women will be advised that:

You are safest not to regularly drink more than 14 units per week, to keep health risks from drinking alcohol to a low level.

If you do drink as much as 14 units per week, it is best to spread this evenly over three days or more. If you have one or two heavy drinking sessions, you increase your risks of death from long term illnesses and from accidents and injuries.

The risk of developing a range of illnesses (including cancers of the mouth, throat and breast) increases with any amount you drink on a regular basis.

The old advice suggested that men should drink no more than three to four units a day and women two to three, with a 48-hour break after heavy drinking sessions. But now the guidance does not differentiate between men and women, reducing recommended intake to 14 units across the whole week. The fear was that by having a daily limit it suggested it was alright to drink every day.

The guidance makes it clear that should not happen, and there are no safe drinking levels – with the exception that women over the age of 55 can get some benefit to their hearts from a small amount of drinking of up to five units a week.

If you wish to cut down the amount you’re drinking, a good way to help achieve this is to have several drink-free days each week.

For more information on the new alcohol guidelines visit: https://www.drinkaware.co.uk/check-the-facts/what-is-alcohol/new-government-alcohol-unit-guidelines