Peer Reviewed
Psychological medicine

Dealing with hidden drinking problems

Stephen Jurd
Abstract
Alcohol is a drug. It kills many more Australians than heroin does.
Key Points
    Remember
    • A standard drink contains 10 grams of alcohol.
    • The NHMRC recommended limits for safe drinking are up to four standard drinks a day for men and up to two for women, with two alcohol-free days each week. Above these limits is considered hazardous drinking.
    • Over six drinks a day for a man and over four drinks a day for a woman is considered harmful.
    • More damaging still is dependent drinking. Alcohol dependence is common, affecting 5% of Australian men and 2% of women. Many of these alcohol dependent people are superficially unremarkable.
    • If it looks like a drinking problem and it smells like a drinking problem, then it is one.
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