Is drinking a bottle of wine four nights a week a problem?

And there is is......... The 'LOLOLOLOL I drink 10 times more than that, and I'm absolutely fine hahaha' brigade have struck.

If you can sink 2 bottles of wine in one sitting, trust me, you are NOT fully functioning. Your insides and internal organs must be screaming in pain.

I'm sure you're very proud of how much you can knock back though. 🙄

I'm cringing for you.

It's far too much. A bottle of wine is approximately 10 units so that person is drinking 40 units a week. Recommended maximum is 14 units per week. So 3 times more than the maximum recommended. It will be having a terrible effect on your liver.

It IS a lot, but I did the same through my 20s and 30s with no ill effects. It's only now in my 50s that I barely drink, because my body cannot tolerate it.

TBH I don't think it was problematic for me. I enjoyed it!

@ArseSkinForAFriend is right, @Dersnannienow - you are asking because you are worried you have a problem, and from what you have said, I would say you do - I’m sorry, I know that is hard to hear.

Please reach out for help - AA may be useful, or your doctor could signpost you to services that could support you. The Drinkaware website might also be useful.

Take it one day at a time.

It's a problem, OP. Whether you can function or not, is not relevant. It's a substance/alcohol addiction. You will be physically harming your health and doing a lot of internal damage that sometimes we can be unaware of. It will catch up to you. I would talk to your GP and perhaps switch to something lighter/alcohol free wine, slowly. You don't need to go cold turkey. You've already started the first step by asking about the issue. You can do it.

following on from my post and reading others. You need to be honest with yourself at some point.

If you need drink/have an addiction, you are doing yourself no favours cutting down. It turns into a continuous cycle of “being good” which is relatively easy in early years, reverting back to previous amounts, arguments with family again, being good, being “bad”, blaming family for making out you have a problem etc.

If you do have an alcohol problem going long term teetotal is the only really solution.

I used to drink the same or even more, I thought it was fine and everyone drank that amount. After i gave up i realised it wasn’t fine, and the only people drinking that much have a drink problem. Tbh if it weren’t for my kids i’d probably still be drinking that much. But when you’re responsible for children you really need to be sober except on the odd occasion. It’s only when you give up that you realise drinking doesn’t really add anything to your life, it only takes.

Sorry, I think you have a drink problem. That amount is not good for you. No amount it, its literally poison.

@Dersnannienow

No idea which way to vote, so I haven't, but 4 full bottles of wine a week is far too much IMO. Some Mumsnetters will start rattling on about how they sink half that in one night though! Like some badge of honour. 🙄

A quick Google search brought up this... You are consuming three times more alcohol than is healthy.

Drinking 4 bottles of wine a week is considered way above the low-risk drinking guidelines in the UK and most health organizations.

Understanding the Amount

• Total volume: Four standard 750ml bottles equals 3,000ml of wine total per week.

• Standard units: A typical bottle of 13.5% alcohol wine contains about 10 units. Four bottles equal roughly 40 units a week.

• The guidelines: The UK Chief Medical Officers recommend drinking no more than 14 units a week on a regular basis. Forty units is nearly triple this recommended limit.

Health Risks

• Long-term impact: Regularly drinking above 14 units a week increases your risk of liver disease, high blood pressure, heart problems, and certain types of cancer.

I ignore the units per week. It does seem a lot. A bottle of wine for one person four nights a week. It depends on you build, all sorts of things how your body can deal with alcohol. Do you drink water as well with it ? What percentage are you talking ? 9.5 or 14.5 ?

I am afraid I do not have a lot of faith in guidelines. They are too one size fits all. If you drink to the point of getting blotto every night you have a problem. If you cannot remember things the next day likewise. If you are ashamed of it then something is telling you something is wrong.

4 whole bottles - very much an issue. Bad for your health. That amount of drinking is as bad as smoking.

4 glasses a week, doing ok.

I think if someone has said something to you then perhaps they think you have a problem too. It wouldn't be hard to see the effects on someone next to you when they've had a whole bottle of wine.

Look after yourself OP.

It’s not necessarily the quantity that’s the issue but Why are you drinking that amount of alcohol so regularly?

Are you bored in the evenings and it’s become a bit of a habit or do you want to get slightly pissed in order zone out?

If you’re using alcohol to change how you feel and maybe to forget, then regardless of the amount consumed, you clearly have a problem.

Yes. It's defo too much. But you know this already.

The fact that you're admitting to 4 bottles a week probably means it's much more. Those with booze problems always underplay it.

Why did someone need to tell you 40units a week is drink problem territory? This is mumsnet though where many probably drink the same if not more and will minimise.

A couple of glasses occasionally is healthy. For your kids sake you need to reduce the amount massively. You say you function properly. I'd bet those living with you would disagree.

There definitely is a problem.

You would have to have a very unusual constitution for that amount of alcohol not to be quietly destroying your liver.

Yes, healthwise, it's a problem to drink that much. If you can't get through the week without a drink, you're a functioning alcoholic.

It's definitely a problem. Why don't you think it's a problem? Are your parents alcoholics, too, so you see it as normal?

I’d suggest to start small Op - instead of a whole bottle, ration for a half and/or instead of 4 nights do 2. Figure out what motivates you - health, treating yourself, saving the cost, and put steps in for that. Having alcohol free or lower alcohol might help, or as it gets colder maybe a hot chocolate or some other nice drink?

I’ve recently got my own drinking in check, driven by wanting to lose weight and save money. Putting the calories in my fitness pal hurts, and the budget I’m saving is going into a pot for some new mani/pedi gear.

An entire bottle in just one night is indeed a problem, even if you are functional.

Does "fully functioning" also apply to the status of your liver and your blood pressure?

As for "who drinks a quarter of a bottle of wine?"

I get 7 to 8 small "Paris" type glasses out of a 75cl bottle which I stretch over 8 days, then I have a wine free period of 7 days before I open another bottle. It is possible not to drink a quarter of a bottle a night.

Yes.

Yes

Lots of people including me.

You must know, from a health perspective that level of drinking it is reckless and dangerous. The health issues may not hit you until later when you are older, but they are happening.

So I assume you are asking if you have a drinking problem. No one can tell you as either you are “only” choosing to being reckless, or you have an addiction/need to drink that you are down playing,

Either way something needs to change for the good of your health.

Having experienced alcoholics/drinkers in both mine and dh’s family they don’t tend to move from functioning to falling apart until their late 50s as the addiction and self loathing takes over, and then the fallout, especially for their children is not pretty. Sort yourself out.

That’s a huge amount. Also, think of the cost! Assuming £8 a bottle, that’s £32 a week, over £120 a month, and maybe more.