To think 87.3% of British women don't drink less than me?

[theduchessstill]

I went on one of those sites where they track and evaluate your drinking - was inspired to do so by another thread. I know I drink a bit too much - across three nights I have a bottle of wine and often a couple of bottles of lager or another glass or 2 of wine.

The site calculated it as 16 units - I knew it would be there or thereabouts so no great shock there, but then said that 87.3% of British women drink less. I find that hard to believe. Who is buying all the wine then? There are people who are alcoholics, people who drink small - medium amounts every night, people who have a massive blow-out every week etc etc.

Surely we don't have a massive problem with alcohol in this country (and we do) if the vast majority of women drink less than me, who drinks slightly over the maximum amount recommended. In particular, I understood women's drinking was of particular concern.

I'm not looking for validation - I know the amount I have is a bit too much but I'm happy enough with it atm, but that figure seemed unlikely to me.

I rarely drink as I have to really fancy it and I rarely do. I drank more alcohol as a 15yo than I do now. I'm usually driving if I go out (rarely) and I don't like feeling out of control, so I stick with soft drinks. I think a lot of people don't drink; I know quite a few that don't.

The stats clearly come from drunk people who dont tell the truth.

Is that the Drinkaware Comparison Calculator you're using, OP? I discovered that a few days ago and found the results quite interesting.

Here it is if anyone else wants to compare their drinking to the rest of UK women: www.drinkaware.co.uk/little-less/

I just did a test entry and put my alcohol intake as two glasses of wine per week and apparently this would put me at drinking more than 61.5% of UK women. As if!

I have one bottle of refreshing thirst quenching cool beer each night and I love it (can you tell?). It is probably really bad for me but I really look forward to it when I get home. It's the sharp sourness that I love, and no soft drink really gives that to you. However, that's 14 units per week which is pretty high - might have to start buying grapefruit juice again...

I don't drink. My mum doesn't drink. I don't think we're that unusual.
It's not something generally discussed, though, is it, because it is still often seen as a bit odd / weird not to drink at all. People are like confused "Why not?"

People seem to find it difficult to accept that you don't drink. personally speaking, if I say I don't want an alcoholic drink then that leads to a lot of attempted arm twisting. "Oh go on." "Just have the one" "Are you sure?"

What site / link did you follow for the assessment? I'd be up there with you and I'd like to see just how naughty I am!

You never get a true picture of people's drinking habits on threads like this OP

I usually drink a bottle of wine and a few gins every week but this week I've had two bottles of wine in two days and am out again on Friday. I'll have had way more than the recommended weekly units this week but will probably have very little to drink next week. Some people like a drink, some people think it's the devil's work

I barely drink at all, go months drinking no alcohol at all. Sometimes, though, I'll have a very small glass of wine, maybe about twice a year. If we have a 'special' in the cupboard, I will have a thimbleful every so often. Even at Xmas, a couple of glasses of champagne is enough. My head is so weak! I used to be able to drink strong men under the table -and frequently did! - but that was 20+ years ago.

We have had a bottle of sloe gin in the cupboard for over a month. I've had two thimbles-worth of it.

I drink 2-3 times a month, a couple of glasses with a meal. Most of my family don't drink. I don't think I know anyone who routinely drinks every night.

I expect lots of people drink mainly at weekends as you do, so the stats do seem a little odd. But there have been a lot of campaigns for sensible drinking so maybe things are changing.

I know more people who don't or rarely drink than those who do. It's just the way it is in my group of friends. It's my normal, like your normal amongst you friends and acquaintances has led to you being surprised about the 87%.

Although I can't say I trust the quiz on that figure. I did one of those 'what country do you drink like' quizzes a little while ago, BBC website I think. I got Jordan . I can't remember the exact reasoning behind it but it didn't seem logical. For one thing it said they drink mainly spirits, I have the occasional wine. Not the same thing.

If it makes you feel better, OP, I very rarely go out on the lash, but do have a glass of wine with dinner pretty much every night - Sunday to Thursday only ever one glass, sometimes two or three on a Friday or Saturday.

I think I actually drank less when I was younger - never thought to drink in the week and if I went out was on a budget of about £15! So that average will include all those young very occasional drinkers who are under 18, and will also include a lot of older women who ime don't tend to drink much, especially when they are on multiple meds etc. (Work in healthcare). Then you have all the pregnant and bfing women...

If it helps I drink about that or maybe more ATM, but haven't always...

I'm another non drinker. I'm not actually teetotal, I just don't generally drink. Not sure when I last had any alcohol, probably Christmas. And it wouldn't have been much - one glass & I'm plastered these days...

I rarely drink, just not that fussed about it. I'm trying to lose weight and it seems a waste of calories which I'd rather use on food. The last time I drank alcohol was at Christmas.
If I wasn't trying to lose weight, I'd perhaps drink 1 bottle of lager twice a week.
I don't think I'm that unusual for may age group of 50+. The majority of other women I know may drink 1 or 2 glasses of wine socially once a week. Or maybe we just assume that everyone's drinking habits are the same as our own?
Is it an age group thing? My observation is that women in the age group 25-50 seem to be the heaviest drinkers. I can't help wonder whether this is something to do with being a mother of younger children and the need to give yourself an adult treat when the kids are in bed!

But I also feel anyone asking the question and assuming other people must drink as much as they do need to seriously ask themselves why they feel the need to minimise.

I drink less than that OP. I have about three glasses of wine once a month when we get together with friends. Three is my limit...after that I get loud and silly.

I think the stat means that 87% of women lie about what they are drinking!

Ok so not the whole 87% but ime a lot of people vastly underestimate what they drink. I remember once being on shift when a bunch of the regulars were discussing the alcohol guidance, how it was OTT and how having "a couple" every night was fine and basically backing each other up. A couple might well be, but they would get through at least 4 drinks each, and pints are 2 units as are large glasses of wine. But if you asked them what they drank a day they would probably tell you that they have 2 drinks.

I put one glass a week and apparently 55.1% of women drink less than that. So about 50% of women don't drink?

OP on these kind of threads everyone swears they have half a g and t once a year at Christmas. It's like the food threads - everyone who drinks more than guidelines say don't post so you get a thread full of people who drink very little, because they're not even slightly concerned about posting their consumption. I certainly don't think you drink too much. It's over the guidelines, yes, but hardly. On an average week I drink around 2 bottles of the lower (6%) fruity wine and perhaps 2 or 3 vodka and lemonades twice a week. Not sure how many units that is but I'm not overly concerned

I will go 2 or 3 weeks without drinking then I'll have one night often a Saturday in which I will drink up to 2 bottles of wine (party).

Then nothing next week and then perhaps following Saturday a few beers or something it just depends I go with the flow. I only ever seen to drink on a Saturday night but no every Saturday

I think a lot of women tend to drink wine at home nowadays and when people pour their own drinks they tend to grossly underestimate how much they're drinking. Conversely, if you were in a bar you would probably remember going to the bar and ordering two shots, which are of course measured correctly by the bar worker so you know it is actually just two shots (one shot typically being one unit).

DH and I probably share a bottle of wine once a month or so. More if we're on holiday admittedly but still not very much.

I drink occasionally. That sounds like you drink a lot to me, so that figures sounds reasonable. Even when I was going out regularly in my teens and twenties I doubt if I drank that much on a regular basis on a weekend. But while I enjoy being tipsy, I dislike being drunk so was always good at drinking at a sensible level.

Wine is much stronger than it used to be 12-14%being about average .So 9+units per bottle.So the small 125ml glasses are now 1.5 units and the larger glasses 3+ units.
If you want to work out units the%Vol number gives you the amount of units per litre.So 1 500 ml can of strong lager at 6% is 3 units.
I don't think people do realise how much they drink when just 4 glasses of wine a week takes you up to 12 units.

Teetotal here so I'm not drinking more than you either!

And for the people that seem to think people like me are lying - come along some time and I can show you the bottles of gin, vodka, Jack Daniel's and wine that moved into the house with me, 6 years ago.