With the summer season upon we often plan before heading outdoors. The use of sunscreen, reviewing water safety protocols and attempts to prevent insect bites are ways to avoid unwanted consequences and increase enjoyment during the season. Use of alcohol tends to increase during the summer months. Are you thinking and planning about safe alcohol use? Probably not, but thinking about alcohol in the same purposeful way as a safety concern can avoid serious negative outcomes.

What is Safe Drinking?

It’s a complicated question. Your weight, your sex, age, health, and genetic factors aid in determine how much you can drink safely. Occasional or moderate drinking for many people can be safe. Also, how often, and how much you drink per sitting, is a large part of self-drinking. Occasional drinking is less than 3 drinks a week and not consumed on the same day. Moderate drinking less than one drink a day for women or anyone over 65, or two drinks a day for men under 65. Over this amount is heavy drinking which puts you at risk of developing an addiction to alcohol. Some people should not drink at all, including pregnant women, children, people taking certain medications or with medical conditions, and any of the 17.6 million adults in the United States who have an alcohol addiction.

Next, consider the amount of alcohol in a drink. Often many places over-serve booze. It’s easy to do, especially at home, if your wine or beer glasses are larger than the standard drink size. Unhealthy alcohol use includes any alcohol use that puts your health or safety or places you at risk or causes other alcohol-related problems. Look at your glassware sizes to see if that one drink is actually larger than one.

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism defines one standard drink as any one of these:

• 12 ounces (355 milliliters) of regular beer (about 5% alcohol)
• 8 to 9 ounces (237 to 266 milliliters) of malt liquor (about 7% alcohol)
• 5 ounces (148 milliliters) of wine (about 12% alcohol)
• 1.5 ounces (44 milliliters) of hard liquor or distilled spirits (about 40% alcohol)
• 1.5 ounces of brandy, cognac, or 80-proof distilled spirits.

Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) is a serious medical condition that if left untreated leads to distraction of the individual and their family. 1 in 10 children live in a home with a parent who has a drinking problem. Stages of alcohol use/abuse. The time frame for progression depends on the individual’s biopsychosocial makeup. The issues of each stage are cumulative when progression occurs.

Experimental Drinking

Think about the first time you tried an alcoholic beverage. Chances are it wasn’t what you expected, didn’t taste good, and you didn’t see what the fuss was about. Why use it again? Social pressure, rites of passage, availability and the positive early effects of alcohol lead most people to progress to the next stage.

Social Drinking

Drinking alcohol with other people in a social setting is congenial. There is a billion-dollar media campaign to entice drinking and our culture reinforces social drinking. A social drinker can and does stop drinking when they want. The person is in control of the use. Negative consequences may occur at this stage.

Habitual Drinking

In this stage alcohol is seen as a reward, then becomes a need. It may start with nightly drink, or happy hour, to unwind. The person may start thinking about the after-work drink at 3 o’clock. One glass becomes two or three. This can set the person to use alcohol as a coping skill. Once alcohol is the coping skill other skills are not used. The emotional addiction has begun. Lies about the use drinking alone and emotional attachment to alcohol occurs. Justifying drinking is a key trait in this phase. 

Alcohol Abuse

Drinking an excessive amount of alcohol, despite the harm that may come to the person’s health, relationships, work, and school. The person begins to need alcohol it feels “normal” or get through the day.  Denial about the use and increasing negative consequences occur.

Alcohol Dependance. Biological need for alcohol occurs. Medical consequences occur and if the person continues to drink become irreversible.

Symptom or Warning The diagnostics criteria used to assess AUD include:

• Being unable to limit the amount of alcohol you drink. Drinking more, or longer, than you plan to. Are you putting down the drink or saying no to more when you have reached your limit?
• Increased tolerance: Needing more alcohol for the same effect or you have a reduced effect from the same amount
• Blackouts or passing out.
• Wanting to cut down on how much you drink or making unsuccessful attempts to do so
• Spending a lot of time drinking, getting alcohol, or recovering from alcohol use
• Feeling a strong craving or urge to drink alcohol
• Failing to fulfill major obligations at work, school or home due to repeated alcohol use
• Continuing alcohol use despite persistent or recurring physical, emotional, social, work or interpersonal relationship problems caused or exacerbated by the effects of alcohol.
• Giving up or reducing social and work activities and hobbies to use alcohol. Having problems with work, school, or family because of your habit or because you’re sick after having alcohol.
• Quitting or cutting back on other activities that were important to you in order to drink.
• Using alcohol in situations where it’s physically hazardous, such as when driving, using power tools, or swimming.
• Found that you had withdrawal symptoms when the buzz wore off, like sleep disturbance, shakiness, restlessness, nausea, sweating, a racing heartbeat, a seizure, or seeing, hearing, or feeling things that aren’t there.

Alcohol Use Disorder can be mild, moderate, or severe, based on the number of symptoms you experience. If you have any of these symptoms, your drinking may already be a cause for concern. Two or three of these symptoms in the past year, that’s a mild alcohol use disorder. Moderate disorder is at four to five symptoms. Six or more symptoms, that’s severe. If your pattern of drinking results in repeated significant distress and problems functioning in your daily life, you likely have AUD.  Early detection is important. Drinking habits escalate unless you’re consciously aware and put thought about your drinking into practice. There is lots of help and the millions of recovering alcoholics are proof that there is hope and a better way to live alcohol free. When you plan for safety assess your alcohol use risks and take control before it is taken away from you. If you need help don’t hesitate, reach out and find a better way to live.

SAMHSA’s National Helpline, 1-800-662-HELP (4357) (also known as the Treatment Referral Routing Service), or TTY: 1-800-487-4889 is a confidential, free, 24-hour-a-day, 365-day-a-year, information service, in English and Spanish, for individuals and family members facing mental and/or substance use disorders. This service provides referrals to local treatment facilities, support groups, and community-based organizations.