Discuss How much Drink?

[sunrise]

A few things have changed since I turned 30 a year or so ago and one of those things seems to be my inability to be able to drink until the early hours of the morning. I am not proud of it but I do remember that until a few years ago I was able to stay out drinking until midnight and then get up the next morning and do it all over again. This is not something I have done in a very long time and if I have more than six or seven pints I am basically useless the next day, I also no longer to midweek drinking and I do not drink a lot on Sundays.

The thing is though I do not consider this to be boring, I know some who do but I don't seem to enjoy it if I drink as much as I do and if I do I usually end up getting upset so I avoid it. The drinks commission (or whatever they are called) state:

Men should drink no more than 21 units of alcohol per week, no more than four units in any one day, and have at least two alcohol-free days a week.

Women should drink no more than 14 units of alcohol per week, no more than three units in any one day, and have at least two alcohol-free days a week.

To put this into perspective a pint of normal lager in the UK has 2.3 units, on an average night out I would drink around 8 pints so on that one night I was drinking half of my recommend weekly amount. There are factors of course, your weight, how much you eat before going out etc etc.

But what do you think of all this? Should we be told how much we should be drinking? Is it a nanny state? Is it anything to do with anyone else and what are your drinking habits?

 

[Hilander]

I think all they are doing because of research they have done is letting you know if you go past this amount you could cause yourself medical problems.

The reason you can't drink and keep going anymore is because you are getting older. Not old by any means but older. I think we all reach that point where you can't party like you use to and its time to slow down.

 

[wolfheart]

Everybody has a limit they reach, like you I could drink till the early hours and still function the next day when I was younger, now a night on the drink can throw me for a loop for the whole day.

I still go out, and still drink a fair amount, but instead of drinking one after the other I am spreading them out and not drinking as fast.
I have also stopped hitting the shots, keeping me more or less level headed.

I have also found that having a week or two off the booze every now and then is great at dropping your tolorence.

 

[The_Chameleon]

The state should have a concern with how much people (especially young people) drink as it relates to crime rates, drunk driving, and public health. When it comes to drinking though, nobody wants to be told how much is too much. People will generally drink as much as they want regardless of what the state or anyone else has to say. If you're concerned about how much you can drink without impacting your health, listen to your body. As we get older our bodies metabolically slow down and our hormone levels change, meaning we can't get away with as much self-abuse as we used to.


Some folks remain resistant to the negative effects of alcohol due to regular exposure and/or genetics, but don't feel the need to compete if you're body says it's had enough. As far as health effects go, a couple stouts or glass of red wine here or there is actually heart healthy. Getting smashed however, not so much. If you're going to drink, do so until you get to the sweet spot (where you're feeling good, but haven't had so much that you're going to pay a heavy price later) then stop.


I personally have never been a big booze fan. Unless I drink on an empty stomach, it takes me 6 paralyzers to get a good buzz on, and at $5-$6 bucks a pop, it's just not an economical way for me to have fun. That's half the cost of a bag of top-shelf herbage to get high once, and it ain't even as nice of a high. If I do drink on an empty stomach I may be a cheap drunk, but end up eating all my groceries when I get home (crazy mega-munchies). I also find that booze eventually gets someone rowdy or belligerent and that's just not my scene.


- Cham