How bad is a glass of wine per night?

[flossie72]

Roughly 2.5 bottles a week - over the recommended units by quite a bit. But isn’t a significant amount per night. Just habitual at this point, and enjoyable over dinner.

I wish there were more readily available quality low alcohol wines. The ‘no alcohol’ ones are mostly sugary wine juice and foul.

The ‘low or no’ alcohol aisles in most supermarkets appear full of gins etc but no low, only ‘no’ alcohol wines. Hasn’t always been the case. A gap in the market surely?

In the summer I copied an auntie and took to diluting my rosé with ice and water. Still tasted lovely and refreshing.

Even though I have never drunk alcohol, I have to say that I was very taken with the non alcohol (obv.) version of Aperol spritz. A friend's daughter had it in her house (she's non drinker also). It was Lyre's Italian Spritz and was mixed with nosecco from M+S. I got that info on the day, and I now have some here for special occasions. It looks very nice in the big glass and tastes good, not sweet, which a lot of non alcohol stuff is. I know! My usual drink is Belvoir ginger cordial with fizzy water though.

I have spent years, decades actually trying to find a way to drink that works for me.

I accidentally stumbled across Allen Carr's stop drinking book and because I was away with nothing else to entertain me, I read it. I didn't have any plans to stop drinking but once I finished the book that was it. I haven't wanted a drink since. It was only a couple of months ago but I don't see any reason to reverse my decision because there has been no downside at all but plenty of upsides.

I think stick to a few alcohol free nights and not a massive issue. I don’t drink at all Monday - Thursday and 2 glasses per night (not always, sometimes don’t bother) on weekend.

The unit count varies widely depending on the ABV percentage of wine. Big differences between a heavy red at 14% and a light white at 11%.

Have a look at the My drink aware app. It’s a really simple way to calculate your intake accurately and then take it from there.

A standard bottle of wine (11\12%) is 10 units so 2.5 bottles is 25 units

This is from the WHO in 2024. Quite scary stats.

*Breast cancer cases in Europe higher than ever
Breast cancer represents a major health concern for women across the WHO European Region, with more than 600 000 cases in 2022. The role of alcohol as a preventable risk factor for breast cancer is critical. For women in Europe, breast cancer is the primary cancer caused by alcohol, making up 66% of all cases of alcohol-attributable cancers.

Research indicates that even relatively low levels of alcohol consumption can contribute to the risk of developing breast cancer. More than half of all breast cancer cases attributable to alcohol in Europe are not due to heavy drinking, and about one third of new cases every year are due to drinking the equivalent of up to 2 small glasses of wine per day.

Not quite. A bottle is 750ml. One litre of 12% wine is 12 units, so one bottle is 9 units. 2.5 bottles would be 22.5 units. 11% wine would be slightly less.

@Dzer They have to blame it on something, and I'm not sure that it's small amounts of alcohol alone. Anyway....

So once again men can drink what they like, although I know they can get BC also, but in minimal numbers. Does alcohol contribute to prostate cancer or any other cancers in men?

We'll be in chastity belts next!

OP knows she is sliding into alcoholism but wants MN to tell he she can go on. Well: it's fine, OP, nothing to see here!!

I would say that's a lot. Maybe next week go 7 days without alcohol and see how you feel?

Is that how to work it out? 12% = 12 units in a litre bottle; 14% =14 units etc? I had no idea it was that simple.

Respectfully, you have a problem

Yes - it is that simple! And as most standard bottles are 750ml, it's just three-quarters of the number of units in a litre.

Half a bottle of wine is 2 glasses, surely? Everyday is bad. Why not save it for Friday-Sunday? So you've had a rest in-between?

That does suggest you are quite habituated op. Even 1 x 250 ml is around 3 units and would leave me pretty woozy. If you did mean two that's over half a bottle and most people would be pretty drunk after that.

Is there any reason to be so petty? Thankfully there have been some sensible posters who have offered useful perspective without resorting to such childish, pointless comments. Why waste your time?

It’s clear that once a MN stranger has labelled you an alcoholic you have to accept that you are one because if you disagree then you’re just defensive about being an alcoholic 😂

Very grateful to the posters who’ve offered sensible input, it’s given me a lot to think about.

Definitely habituated. Willingly accept that. Half a bottle is 375ml so I guess a large glass and a small glass, which yes I could easily enjoy over a few hours on a Saturday with a film and takeaway. I still don’t think it’s horrendous when I think about the binge drinking culture from my youth. Quite often there would be full bottles of wine and shots before even leaving the house!

To reiterate, I don’t usually drink every night. I usually have 2-3 nights off per week but because of school holidays/being away/a change in routine it has been more frequent over the past couple of weeks. I will definitely be getting back to normal and possibly cutting back on top of that.

I think you will notice a marked improvement in your sleep, skin amd energy levels if you gave up this habit for a bit.

I think the comments using the word " alcoholic " are really unhelpful and unnecessary. I wish you luck OP with cutting down your intake. Take it slowly as making small changes will work best. Medical evidence around harms of alcohol has changed rapidly over the past 10 years. What we do know for certain is;

• alcohol raises cancer risk
• there is no amount that is good for you .The red wine is a myth.
• alcohol makes menopause symptoms worse

I love love a glass of red wine and Im not giving that up. So I have cut down to a few glasses a week - sometimes a bit more if Im out and I make sure it's a good one and really enjoy it. Best of luck

How would you feel if you couldn't have it? The answer to that will tell you if it's a problem or not. It would feel too habitual for me, but I don't really enjoy alcohol these days anyway.

Binging is no better, but I presumee you know that.

Disappointed but not debilitated. The same as if someone told me I could never have chocolate again. It isn’t necessary but it’s enjoyable. I’ve never given it much thought but as I’m approaching 40 I definitely feel like I need to look after my health more.

Thank you x