So, if I asked you how many units were in your glass of wine or pint of beer, would you be able to tell me?
A unit of alcohol is based on 8g of alcohol in the UK, 10g of alcohol in Europe and Australasia and 12g in the USA.
So what does this actually mean: Here is a table based on the 8g of alcohol rule
It means by the time you are having a typical modern wine at 12-14% that 120ml glass of wine is closer to 2 units than one...and many of the wine glasses served are 200 - 300ml.
There is mixed evidence for alcohol's health benefits, as it may be cardioprotective, but it is known to increase the risk of a number of cancers. It is a relaxant, but it is also an agent that depresses the central nervous system. It interacts with a great many medications, making them more or less effective. As it is broken down, it's by-products are toxic. And of course there is the hangovers.
It is unknown at what level alcohol consumption affects the unborn child, and while a woman who gets pregnant on a slightly boozy weekend should not be obsessed she has damaged her baby, as a dietitian I discourage alcohol consumption once a pregnancy is known.
Interestingly enough I have known breast fed babies to object to the taste of their mother's milk if Mum has drunk a small amount of alcohol...so a breast-feeding Mum may find she has to remain alcohol free as well.
So am I pro or con?
Coming from NZ, I have had the privelage of growing up with good local wines, so being anti-alcohol is not really a choice, but I encourage moderation.
It is important to remember alcohol is one of the most calorific of nutrients at 30kJ or 7kcal per ml, so weight loss will be helped by reduced intake.
As a public health dietitian, I am not sure these messages about cancer get through to the youngsters who are binge drinkers, so do look out for my next post which will be on
"the real message against binge drinking: alcohol makes you fat, ugly and miserable"
Helen
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