It’s easy to over-do it, especially when you’re out with mates or kicking back with Friday drinks after a tiring week. However, there are plenty of simple measures you can take to still enjoy your alcohol without ending up drunk. Let’s take a look below.
Why Avoid Intoxication in the First Place?
Unfortunately Australia’s drinking culture has normalised intoxication; sometimes it can seem like the inevitable outcome of an evening out. However, unless you’ve been living in a cave, you’d have to be aware that intoxication, especially if it’s a regular occurrence, can have some pretty nasty consequences. We won’t reiterate all the health side effects here but feel free to check out the long term effects and short term effects for a memory refresh.
Consider these statistics too, published by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare:
- In 2013, 21% of recent drinkers put themselves or others at risk of harm while under the influence of alcohol in the previous 12 months (for example, by driving a vehicle, or verbally or physically abusing someone or undertaking some other risky activity)
- In the same year, 26% of Australians were victims of an alcohol-related incident; verbal abuse was the most common incident reported
Not to mention, getting drunk the night before means the next day is often a write-off. Who has the time?!
Our Biggest Tip - Know Your Safe Drinking Limit
While it is helpful to follow the Australian Drinking guidelines, which are currently under revision, it’s also important to listen to your own body. According to the guidelines you should be aiming to consume a maximum of four drinks a day, both to limit your health impacts and to avoid intoxication. However, for some of us, especially those who don’t drink regularly, four drinks may actually be enough to become intoxicated! The amount you can safely consume without getting tipsy is influenced by so many factors including your age, weight, health, gender, whether you’ve eaten beforehand and how many drinks your body is used to processing on a daily basis. Sometimes it’s hard to know what even constitutes a standard drink as alcoholic beverages are served in various ways and contain varying concentrations of alcohol (it can also depend a little on how generous your bartender is!) So in the end, it comes back to listening to your body and respecting its limitations.
More Tips
If you’re serious about practicing safe drinking, as we mentioned above, there are plenty of simple steps you can take:
- Like digital solutions? Consider downloading an app like this one to help you recognise when you’re going over the limit – handily it also tells you how many calories you’re drinking!
- Set reminders or alarms on your phone to keep you focussed on limiting your drinks. You can also set an alarm to remind you of the time you’d like to leave for home, you then just need the self-discipline to stick to the time
- Don't mix drinks, it makes it harder to keep track of how much you’ve drunk
- Drink at a slow pace and take small sips. It can help to order some finger food to enjoy with your drinks
- Avoid rounds and shots for obvious reasons
- Practice being assertive and saying no to friends when you think you’ve had enough
- Whenever you drink socially, try to ensure there’s more going on than just drinking – select a spot near a pool table or darts board or sit outside and people-watch