Alcohol Awareness Week is a week of awareness-raising, campaigning for change, and more. This year's Alcohol Awareness Week takes place from 1-7 July 2024.

Are you drinking too much?

Are you aware of the alcohol guidelines? Alcohol guidelines were published to enable people to make informed choices about their drinking and reduce alcohol-related health harms.

The guidelines (not instructions or rules!) recommend that:

• Men and women should not regularly drink more than 14 units of alcohol a week. Units should ideally be spread evenly over three days or more. You should have several alcohol-free days each week
• Drinkers should limit the amount they consume on single occasions, and combine drinking alcohol with eating food and drinking water
• Pregnant women should avoid drinking altogether

These guidelines recommend a level of consumption that reduces the risk of dying of an alcohol-related cause to less than 1%. 

How can I find out more?

To find find out more about alcohol, its effects and what you are actually drinking in our e-learning module.

If you’re concerned that you are drinking too much, there are small behavioural changes you can make to cut back:

• Keep a drinks diary to keep track of how much you’re consuming
• Avoid drinking in rounds
• Take more alcohol-free days
• Do more activities that don’t involve alcohol

The “Drink Less” app (available for Apple and Android) can help you to keep track of your drinking, as well as get advice and tips for cutting down.

Further support

For further information visit our Alcohol and Substance Misuse page where you can also download our policy.

If you think you and/or someone you know may be drinking too much, contact Dan24/7 (Wales) on 0808 808 2234.

Al-Anon provides support to anyone whose life is, or has been, affected by someone else’s drinking.                    Visit al-anonuk.org.uk.

Article submitted by: Health & Wellbeing Team