On this page you will find lots of information on the units and calories there are in alcoholic drinks and the benefits of cutting back on your alcohol consumption. There are also links to some very helpful tools and apps.
Do you feel like you need to cut back on how much alcohol you are drinking? It can be easier than you think. You can either register now for support with us or call our health advisors on
NHS alcohol consumption guidelines recommend that both men and women do not drink more than 14 units of alcohol a week regularly. However, many people are not aware of how many units are in their favourite alcoholic drinks.
Other drinks
Alcohol also contains a lot of calories as well so if you drink and are looking to lose weight you need to be aware of exactly how much alcohol you are consuming.
Get medical advice before you stop drinking if you have physical withdrawal symptoms (like shaking, sweating or feeling anxious until you have your first drink of the day). It can be dangerous to stop drinking too quickly without proper support.
Cutting down your alcohol consumption can have many benefits including:
Drinking can affect anxiety and stress levels and this in turn can have a direct impact on your mental health. Cutting down on alcohol means that you should notice an improvement in your overall mood.
When you drink alcohol, this affects your sleep because it prevents you from having a deeper, more restorative sleep. Therefore, by cutting back on alcohol you should notice that you sleep more deeply and feel more refreshed upon waking in the morning.
As mentioned in the points above, as alcohol affects your mood and sleep it stands to reason that your energy levels are also going to be affected as well. Simply by being able to have a deeper, more restful sleep and also by feeling better in ourselves day to day we should also notice that our energy levels increase as we cut back on alcohol consumption.
By going out to drink less and buying less alcohol to drink at home you can end up saving a significant amount of money depending on how much alcohol you normally consume. You could put the money you would normally use on alcohol into a jar and then treat yourself at the end of the month or put the money towards something you may be saving up for.
Alcohol is highly calorific and so by cutting down how much you drink on a regular basis you should also notice that you lose weight also as long as you are following a healthy balanced diet (visit our Eat Well page for info on a healthy diet). Find out about calories in alcohol.
If you or someone you know is drinking too much and you would like to get some support, then help is available.
As mentioned above in line with NHS alcohol guidelines men and women are advised not to drink more than 14 units a week on a regular basis.
Those that do drink more than 14 units of alcohol on a regular basis over a prolonged period of time are at an increased risk of a serious health event such as stroke, heart disease, liver disease and also some forms of cancer. In addition to this, drinking at high risk levels can affect your mental health and can also possibly lead to brain damage and damage to the nervous system.
If you are not sure how many units you are consuming each week you can use the Alcohol Change unit calculator.
You may feel that you are drinking too much alcohol or you may be concerned about someone else who you feel is drinking too much. If this is the case and you feel like you need extra support you can contact your GP or you can get local support from WDP Merton which is the local alcohol support service for the borough.