Safe drinking
Most people with alcohol related illness aren’t alcoholics; they regularly drink more than the recommended amount.
Regularly exceeding the recommended limits increases the risk of liver cirrhosis; cancer of the mouth, neck and throat; breast cancer; reduced fertility; high blood pressure; heart attack; fatigue & depression.
Guidelines
To keep health risks from alcohol to a low level if you drink most weeks:
- men and women are advised not to drink more than 14 units a week on a regular basis
- spread your drinking over 3 or more days if you regularly drink as much as 14 units a week
- if you want to cut down, try to have several drink-free days each week
Fourteen units is equivalent to 6 pints of average-strength beer or 10 small glasses of low-strength wine.
For more information visit
| Resource | Description | Contacts |
| NHS website | Hints and tips to help you cut down, information on what a unit really is and apps to track your drinking. | www.nhs.uk/Livewell/alcohol |
| Alcoholics Anonymous | Concerned solely with the personal recovery and continued sobriety of individual alcoholics who turn to AA for help. |
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org.uk Helpline: 0845 769 7555 |
| Harm Minimisation Service | Recovery focused support service for anyone whose life is affected by their own or somebody else’s alcohol or drug abuse. |
The Rectory Centre, Rectory Rd, Oxford, OX4 1BU |
Page last reviewed: 21 June, 2021