If you’re looking for a way to cut down on alcohol without cutting it out completely, reduced or lower alcohol drinks could be perfect for you.
‘Low-alcohol drinks’ refers to drinks which have an ‘alcoholic strength by volume’ (ABV) of between 0.05 and 1.2%, whereas ‘reduced alcohol’ means a drink has an alcohol content lower than the average strength of a particular type of drink. This means that wine with an ABV strength of 5.5%, is a reduced alcohol wine, as opposed to a low-alcohol wine.
Without realising it, the units of alcohol in your favourite drinks can quickly add up, taking you over the UK Chief Medical Officers' (CMO) low risk drinking guidelines.
The guidelines advise:
Choosing lower strength alternatives means (providing you drink the same number of drinks) you consume fewer units of alcohol and are more likely to stay within the guidelines.
The health benefits of switching to low alcohol or non-alcoholic drinks are clear. In the short term, you’re more likely to get a better night’s sleep; feel fresher in the morning and have a more productive day at work as a result. What’s more, some lighter products are lower in calories, so your waistline will thank you too.
Importantly, reducing the number of units you consume helps avoid the more serious long-term effects of drinking too much, including cancer, mental health problems, high blood pressure and heart disease.
Lower alcohol drinks can be a great way of cutting down on the amount you of drink at home or pacing yourself on a night out, helping to avoid the short term effects of drinking too much.
They can also form part of a sustainable approach to cutting down in the longer term. For example, if you regularly have a couple of glasses of wine after work, switching to a 5.5% wine instead of the usual 12-14% can more than halve the number of units you drink in an evening, making a huge difference over a week and reducing your risk of longer-term harm.
Simple strategies to cut down on alcohol
The increase in demand for lighter, healthier drinks means there’s no shortage of options when it comes to high quality, lower strength wine and beer.
You can find ‘light’ wine, especially white, rosé and sparkling in all of the bigger supermarkets as well as lots of pubs and bars. There are also lots of lighter style reds on the market and keep an eye out for in-store promotions and new light ranges.
There’s also a growing range of lower alcohol beers on offer, with several citrus flavoured options.
A non-alcoholic drink isn’t actually the same as an alcohol-free one.
As the name suggests, non-alcoholic drinks are those containing no alcohol at all. Drinks classified as ‘alcohol-free’ do contain a very small amount of alcohol but only at a strength of 0.05% or less.
Like lower alcohol drinks, alcohol-free and non-alcoholic wine and non-alcoholic beer are becoming more popular – and it’s not just for designated drivers.
Introducing lower alcohol or non-alcoholic drinks to your routine is simple, and it doesn’t mean you have to stick to them all the time.
If you’re staying in, why not try switching to a lower alcohol alternative?
If you’re out and about, get into the habit of asking the bar staff which lower strength or non-alcoholic drinks they have. And check the percentage ABV of the house wine with your waiter before you order.
So long as you don’t drink any more drinks than you were before, you may be surprised how easy it is to cut down a few units here and there. Then you can start enjoying the benefits of cutting down, such as getting a better night’s sleep or reducing your blood pressure.
How to cut down on alcohol when you're out
To track your own drinking habits, download our free Drinkaware: Track and Calculate Units app or MyDrinkaware desktop tool.
