Useful Links

Children, Young People and Alcohol

For more information about Children and Alcohol please click here to be directed to the dedicated NHS website http://units.nhs.uk/children.html

What kind of drinker are you?

Researchers have identified nine types of heavy drinker, who are at risk of liver damage and other alcohol-related illnesses.

People who regularly drink at least twice the daily guideline amount of 35 units a week for women and 50 for men range from 'depressed drinker', drinking at home alone, to 'macho drinkers' who spend most evenings in the pub.

The nine types of heavy drinker identified by the Department of Health are:

De-stress drinkers drink to calm down and regain control of their life. They are typically middle-class, and have a stressful home life or pressurised job which makes them feel burdened with responsibility.

Conformist drinkers are driven by a need to belong and seek a structure to their lives. They are mostly males aged 45-59 in clerical or manual jobs, and regular visits to the pub are part of their routine.

Boredom drinkers are solitary drinkers who drink to pass the time. Part of their drinking is about feeling comforted and secure but they also seek a degree of stimulation. They are typically women, aged 35-50.

Depressed drinkers crave comfort, safety and security. These drinkers are of any age, gender or socio-economic group. Their lives are in a state of crisis and they tend to drink very heavily, often at home and alone.

Re-bonding drinkers are driven by a need to keep in touch and re-connect with those close to them. They want release and stimulation and drink on most evenings.

Community drinkers are motivated by the need to belong, and to seek stimulation and release from everyday life in the company of others. They are usually lower-middle-class men and women who drink in large friendship groups.

Hedonistic drinkers crave stimulation and want to abandon control. They want to stand out from the crowd and frequently drink to get drunk – up to three or four times a week. They tend to be divorced with grown-up children.

Macho drinkers almost live in the pub. They're mainly men, and feel a need to stand out from the crowd. They drink to feel a release, but also want to be and feel control (of others rather than themselves).

Border dependents consider the pub a home-from-home. They make regular visits to the pub during the day and the evening, on weekdays and at weekends. They drink fast and often. They're bored, need to conform and are unfulfilled.

The research indicated that drinkers could move through a number of these types, so they could sometimes drink to de-stress and at other times drink to conform.

For the effects of Binge Drinking please click here

If you're regularly drinking twice the guideline of over 35 units for women, or 50 for men a week, you may need help. If you require more information please link to the nhs livewell website by clicking here

Social drinking: the risks

Health campaigns have warned of the dangers of binge drinking and alcohol addiction but social drinking has now emerged as a health risk too.

More than 10 million people in England drink more than the recommended daily amount.

Men should not regularly drink more than three to four units of alcohol a day and women should not regularly drink more than two to three units a day.

'Regularly' means drinking this amount every day or most days of the week.

Up to 22,000 deaths a year in England and Wales are associated in some way with drinking too much alcohol, according to Alcohol Concern. That's twice the rate of 20 years ago.

The number of units of alcohol in a drink depends on the size and strength of your drink. With some strong beers and ciders, a pint or a bottle can contain three units or more. So can a single large glass of wine.

A single large measure of spirits can contain nearly one-and-a-half units. A double can be nearly three units. You cannot count one drink as one unit. You have to check how strong and how large your drink is to know how many units of alcohol are in it.

Some experts warn that we could be facing an epidemic of liver disease. "The prevalence of liver disease in people in their 20s and 30s is rife," says Dr Rajiv Jalan, a liver consultant at University College Hospital in London.

"If we don't do anything about it, we are looking at a cirrhosis epidemic within 15 to 20 years."

Are you poisoning yourself?

The more alcohol you drink the greater your risk of causing various kinds of damage to your body.

Because of this, the NHS gives advice on sensible drinking based on evaluation of all the known risks.

There is no guaranteed ‘safe’ level of drinking but there is a lower risk level for which the risks of harm are in general relatively low.

The risk levels of drinking are classified as:

• Lower risk drinkers are men who don't regularly drink more than three to four units of alcohol a day and women who do not regularly drink above two to three units a day.
• Increasing risk drinkers are men who regularly drink above three to four units of alcohol a day and women who regularly drink above two to three units a day.
• Higher risk drinkers are men who regularly drink more than eight units a day or 50 units a week and women who regularly drink more than six units a day or 35 units a week.

Liver problems, depression, reduced fertility, high blood pressure, increased risk of various cancers and forgetfulness are some of the effects of long-term, excessive drinking

For a more detailed look at the effects of Alcohol on your body please click here.

Where to get help

Realising you have a problem is the first step to getting better but it is often the hardest one.

You may need help with alcohol if:

• you always need to have a drink, 
• you get into trouble because of your drinking, or 
• other people warn you about how much you’re drinking.

A good place to start is your GP. Be honest about how much you drink.

If your body has become dependent on booze, stopping drinking overnight can be life threatening, so get advice about cutting down gradually. Your GP may refer you to a local community alcohol service. Ask about free local support groups, day-centre counselling and one-to-one counselling.

You may be prescribed medication such as chlordiazepoxide, a sedative, to help deal with alcohol withdrawal symptoms. Alcohol withdrawal symptoms can range from loss of sleep, agitation, anxiety, sweating and tremors right through to vomiting, diarrhoea, hallucinations and seizures.

Staying sober

Cutting down and stopping drinking is often just the beginning and most people will need some degree of help to stay alcohol-free in the long-term.

Getting support is crucial to understanding and overcoming the issues that make you drink. Ask your GP or alcohol support group about one-to-one counselling or group support in your area.

You can attend NHS and voluntary agency day centres for up to a year, as well as groups where ex-alcoholics help each other stay sober.

Useful contacts:

• Drinkline is the national alcohol helpline. If you're worried about your own or someone else's drinking, you can call this free helpline, in complete confidence, 24 hours a day. Call 0800 917 8282.
• Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is a free self-help group. Its ‘12-step’ programme involves getting sober with the help of regular support groups. AA's belief is that people with drink problems need to give up alcohol permanently. 
• Al Anon is the AA support group for families and those affected by a problem drinker. Alateen is the AA support group for people aged 12-17 affected by someone else’s drinking. 
• Addaction is a UK-wide treatment agency, helping individuals, families and communities to manage the effects of drug and alcohol misuse.
• Connexions Direct provides access to information and advice on a range of issues for 13 to 19-year-olds including safe drinking. Information on local services is also available.
• Adfam is a national charity working with families affected by drugs and alcohol. Adfam operates an online message board and database of local support groups.

Residential rehabilitation

Most people receive their support to stop drinking in the community. Some need a short period staying in a unit with access to 24-hour medical care so they can receive adequate assistance with their withdrawal symptoms or other problems. This may happen in an NHS hospital ward or medical unit or in a residential rehabilitation service, depending on the situation. The best results from residential rehab are achieved when participants stay for at least 12 weeks. Residential rehab is usually reserved for people with medium or high levels of alcohol dependence, particularly if other forms of help have not been successful.

Days are usually structured, with a combination of one-to-one counselling and group therapy as well some selections from a menu of options such as art therapy, sport, life skills, cooking, financial management and family/couples therapy for relatives. You may be referred to residential rehab through the NHS. It’s also possible to pay to go privately. Medical insurance companies may fund this for a certain period.

There are a number of websites that provide information on residential rehabilitation units. It's not possible to give advice on which sites are most useful or balanced in approach, but ones you will find on the internet include: 

• Alcohol Concern directory. Alcohol Concern is the national agency on alcohol misuse. Its directory allows users to search for residential rehabilitation providers by region and provides links.
• The European Association for the Treatment of Addiction (EATA) is an umbrella organisation for the independent drug and alcohol treatment and aftercare sector. It has a directory of services.

(This information has been taken form the nhs/livewell.co.uk website)