Binge Drinking vs Heavy Drinking

Most American adults drink alcohol at least occasionally, but about 1 in 4 knock back several drinks in a short period of time at least once a year. About 1 in 6 American adults say they regularly binge drink, sometimes several times a month. A person who has a couple of glasses of wine with dinner probably doesn’t think they get drunk every night, and probably doesn’t consider themselves a heavy drinker. That person may go out once a month and get drunk – and that seems totally normal to them. On the other hand, someone who has more than two drinks a night might admit they get drunk most nights and probably also knows they’re a heavy drinker. Whether or not they binge, they likely know heavy drinking isn’t the best health choice – and most of us would agree.

There is no shame in admitting to yourself that you’ve experienced alcohol-related problems and considering doing something about it. People do this all the time and the vast majority do so without ever going to rehab. For reference, a BAC of .08 is the legal limit for DWI/DUI in the U.S. A driver caught with a BAC of .08 or higher is automatically considered to be DWI/DUI.

Qualities to Look for When Choosing a North Carolina Alcohol Rehab Center

Understanding the risks and any possible health benefits of alcohol often seems confusing; that’s understandable, because the evidence for moderate alcohol use in healthy adults isn’t certain. Nine out of 10 binge drinkers aren’t dependent on alcohol, but doctors and scientists think they’re more likely to develop alcohol use disorder. Adults under 35 are more https://ecosoberhouse.com/article/the-consequences-of-alcohol-symptoms-and-effects/ likely to do this than other age groups, and men are twice as likely as women. People who make more than $75,000 a year and are more educated are most likely to binge drink. Health officials define moderate drinking as just one drink a day for women and two drinks a day for men. That means 5 fluid ounces of wine a day for women and 10 fluid ounce for men.

• This adds strong indirect evidence that alcohol itself reduces heart disease risk.
• All excessive alcohol consumption can lead to problems in your health and safety, both in the short and long term.
• It also addressed instances where moderate drinking or a goal of pursuing moderate drinking could be hazardous to your health and well-being.
• Moderate drinking has been described by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as one drink or less for women and two drinks or lower for men.
• After nine years, the risk of multiple health problems was more than double that of participants who didn’t binge drink.

Definitions are different based on the person’s sex, because there are differences in how men’s and women’s bodies process and metabolize alcohol. Researchers surveyed 1,229 drinkers ages 30 and older in 2004 to 2005, and again from 2015 to 2016. The participants were separated between moderate and heavy drinkers, with moderate drinking defined as having an average of one drink per day over the course of a week. To put binge drinking or heavy drinking behind you, you must get the treatment and support you need to overcome your problematic drinking.

Moderate, Heavy, Binge: The Levels of Problem Drinking

She never drank during the workweek, but on weekends were different. People with severe problems, such as those who keep on drinking even after they lose jobs or get DUIs, need treatment to stop drinking completely. Moderate drinking has been described by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as one drink or less for women and two drinks or lower for men. That’s how they determined how much people drank, which was the first step in the process. To measure harm caused by alcohol or alcohol-related problems, participants answered 7 questions from the Composite International Diagnostic Interview-Short Form (CICD-SF).

• We offer a safe and trustworthy facility for people struggling with substance abuse.
• Those in the group binge drinking had five times better chance of developing alcohol-related health issues.
• And the tricky part of the moderation path is that there’s no way to know which heavy drinkers can learn to control their drinking rather than having to give it up completely.
• Binge drinking is a pattern of drinking that results in a person’s blood alcohol concentration (BAC) reaching up to .08 (80mg%).
• However, if a reason is sufficient enough, such as a motive to stay sober or stop drinking, these individuals have little trouble doing so.

A reputable rehab center can provide the opportunity for a sober, rewarding life. Such a trend could point to a need for improved medical screenings that ask for more details on drinking patterns. Heavy drinkers and alcohol binging may indirectly put themselves at a position where they become victims of unintended dangerous activities. For instance, sexual offenses, death by driving while drunk, etc. However, the data in this study says the former person is at highest risk of the most long-term harm from alcohol, and the latter person is at less risk of significant long-term harm from alcohol. At risk, certainly, but at less risk than the person most of us would think is not at much risk at all.

The Bottom Line: Balancing Risks and Benefits

When treating alcoholism, it is equally important that mental health is addressed as well. If an underlying mental illness is left untreated, symptoms may continue after a person stops drinking. There is also some evidence that genes influence how alcohol affects the cardiovascular system. An enzyme called alcohol dehydrogenase helps metabolize alcohol. One variant of this enzyme, called alcohol dehydrogenase type 1C (ADH1C), comes in two “flavors.” One quickly breaks down alcohol, the other does it more slowly. Moderate drinkers who have two copies of the gene for the slow-acting enzyme are at much lower risk for cardiovascular disease than moderate drinkers who have two genes for the fast-acting enzyme.

But the common thread is that when the individual finds it difficult to have fun or relax without a drink, there is a mental dependence on alcohol. In addition to an alcoholic consuming more drinks on a single occasion and more often than a moderate drinker, an alcoholic also has a dependence on this substance that someone at a moderate level does not. Alcohol is an addictive drug, both physically and mentally, and becomes the most important thing to an alcoholic in his or her life. This person typically gives up social interactions and relationships in favor of opportunities to drink, which a moderate drinker is far less likely to do.

The Results: In-Depth Explanation and Analysis

That one night out with friends may be more harmful to your health than having a drink every day of the week, new research suggests. The limits are lower for women because they tend to have smaller bodies and less water to dilute alcohol, so the concentration of alcohol in their blood will be higher than in a man who drinks the same amount. The higher a person’s BAC, the greater their risk for drink moderately alcohol-related problems on that occasion. And the higher your BAC is (i.e., the drunker you are), the higher the risk is. Consequences from being intoxicated run the gamut from mildly embarrassing exchanges with others to physical fights to serious injuries (to oneself and/or others). If you want to cut back on your drinking — or quit drinking alcohol altogether — you have plenty of options.

However, research on adult alcohol consumption and its effects usually focuses only on a person’s average level of drinking, which masks binge drinking patterns. As a result, the impact of binge drinking among low- and moderate-level adult drinkers has not been well studied or understood. The primary question the study sought to answer was whether moderate drinking and binge drinking interact to cause harm to moderate drinkers over time. That’s an important question, because most of us know people who have a drink or two every day (or most days) and have five or more drinks on one occasion around once a month. We also know this fairly typical pattern begins around early adulthood/college age and for some people, continues indefinitely – or at least into the middle years, defined here as over age 30 and under age 65.

If you drink excessively or believe you have an unhealthy relationship with alcohol, seek the support and treatment you need to get back on track. Treatment for alcohol abuse can help you address the physical, behavioral, emotional, and social factors that contribute to the condition and help you gain control over your drinking. Does binge drinking mean that a person has an Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD)? That is not a sufficient criterium, although most people with even mild AUD engage in binge drinking. What is the issue with an occasional binge drinking episode? Unlike AUD, binge drinking isn’t considered a mental health condition.

• There is also some evidence that genes influence how alcohol affects the cardiovascular system.
• We do mean everyone, from regular people on the street, to people in treatment, to professional addictionolgists who see these numbers in real life every day.
• Some heavy drinkers who’ve experienced problems from their drinking can learn how to moderate their drinking.
• NIAAA has defined a level of drinking considered “low-risk.” It is no more than three drinks on any day and no more than seven in a week for women, and for men no more than four drinks per day and no more than fourteen drinks per week.
• Heavy drinking is defined as having five or more episodes of binge drinking in the past month.