DAO - Drinking Guidelines & Standard Drinks

As a result of extensive scientific research, the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) published new drinking guidelines for Australians in 2001.

The aim of the Australian Alcohol Guidelines is to provide information about the harms and benefits of drinking so that those wanting to drink can enjoy their drinking and reduce the risk of harm to their health.

What is a standard drink?

The drinking guidelines are based on the concept of a standard drink. A standard drink contains approximately 10 grams of pure alcohol and provides a way to monitor how much you are drinking.

Different drinks contain different concentrations of alcohol. This means that the number of standard drinks in any container will depend on the alcohol concentration of the drink and the size of the container.

All packaged alcoholic drinks are now required to clearly display on the label the number of standard drinks in the container.

Drinks served by the glass are often not served in standard drink sizes, particularly glasses of wine.

The number of standard drinks contained in a variety of alcoholic drinks and containers is provided below:

The Australian Alcohol Guidelines

The guidelines have been set so that people know which levels and patterns of consumption will cause the least harm to their health. The guidelines also help people to monitor their drinking. By cutting down on the amount of alcohol consumed, you can reduce the risk of harmful effects of alcohol on your health.

The following limits are recommended to minimise the risk of immediate or long-term harm from drinking:

	To avoid harm in the long-term	To avoid harm from drinking on any one day
Males	No more than 28 standard drinks in a week. On average no more than 4 standard drinks a day. One or two alcohol free days a week.	Up to 6 standard drinks a day no more than 3 days a week.
Females	No more than 14 standard drinks in a week. On average no more than 2 standard drinks a day. One or two alcohol free days a week.	Up to 4 standard drinks a day no more than 3 days a week.
These drinks should be spread over several hours. It is assumed that the drinks are consumed at a moderate rate to minimise intoxication. These guidelines assume drinkers are not doing skilled activities such as driving, water sports or using machinery. If you are driving, you should limit your drinks and always stay below the legal Blood Alcohol Concentration level. These guidelines are also not recommended if you're: under 18 pregnant on medication have a condition made worse by drinking, such as high blood pressure. The levels set in the guidelines may be too high for people of below average body size (ie below 60kg for men and 50kg for women). If you fit into any of these categories, see your GP for information on appropriate drinking limits.

For more information on the alcohol guidelines go to The Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing website on the guidelines. For more information on the complete guidelines go to The National Health and Medical Research Council’s website (under Australian Alcohol Guidelines).

Guidelines for people up to the age of 18

The Australian Alcohol Guidelines have set out specific guidelines for young people under the age of 18 that choose to drink. The recommendations should be interpreted within the context of the Western Australian (or other state) legislation in relation to alcohol and those aged under 18 years.

The recommendations state that young people:

Are especially urged not to drink beyond the levels for avoiding harm in the longer term and from drinking on any one day (see table on this site for more information on these levels)
Should not drink at all for at least several hours before undertaking activities such as driving, swimming or boating
Should not mix alcohol with other mood altering drugs
If they choose not to drink, should be supported in this decision
In settings where alcohol is available to them, should be supervised by adults
Should keep any drinking to a minimum
Most importantly should not drink to become intoxicated
To become responsible drinkers, a gradual, supervised introduction to alcohol is recommended.

The Health limits and Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC)

The NHMRC health guidelines are based on daily consumption and patterns of drinking and relate to the effect of alcohol on your health in both the short and long term. The Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) drink driving limits set guidelines on consumption per hour and relate to levels of intoxication.

Health

The NHMRC recommendations aim to help people to avoid or reduce the harmful effects of alcohol. This can be either at the time of drinking or in the longer term. These guidelines look at amounts and patterns of drinking such as the total amount drunk on any one day, the amount drunk over a week, and the rate of drinking. The recommendations aim to minimise the risk of physical and social harm from alcohol consumption, both on the day and over your lifetime.

Driving

The amount of alcohol in the blood is called the Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC). BAC is measured by the number of grams of alcohol in 100mL of blood.

Your BAC depends on:

how much alcohol is consumed
what type of alcoholic drink is consumed
how fast the alcoholic drink is consumed
the amount of food in the stomach
other factors such as gender, body size, mood and health.

In Western Australia, it is illegal to drive a motor vehicle when your Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) is 0.05% or greater (or 0.02% and above for probationary drivers and some convicted drink drivers for a three-year period upon reissue of their license). Keeping your BAC level below 0.05% not only keeps you within the law, but keeps you and other road users safer.

If you decide to drink and drive:

Men should have no more than two standard drinks in the first hour and then no more than one standard drink per hour after that.
Women should have no more than one standard drink in the first hour and one standard drink per hour after that.

This is a guide only as your BAC will depend greatly on the factors described above. For more information on alcohol and driving go to The Office of Road Safety.

The Alcohol and Drug Information Service (ADIS)

If you are concerned about your own or someone else’s drinking contact the confidential Alcohol and Drug Information Service (ADIS) on 9442 5000 (country callers: 1800 198 024 toll free).

ADIS is a statewide, 24-hour free confidential telephone service providing information, counselling, referral and advice for anyone concerned about their own or another’s alcohol or other drug use, or wanting more information.

Professional experienced drug and alcohol counsellors staff ADIS.

Parent Drug Information Service (PDIS)

If you are concerned about your child’s drinking and would prefer to discuss this with another parent who has had similar experiences contact the confidential Parent Drug Information Service (PDIS) on 9442 5050 (country callers: 1800 653 203 toll free).

PDIS is a free confidential service where you can speak to a trained volunteer parent.