Alcohol use affects your decision making and judgement. After having alcohol, people often end up doing things they wouldn’t normally do, for example, doing something embarrassing or having sex with someone they wouldn’t have sex with if they were sober.
Alcohol can also affect the brain development of young people, and anyone under the age of 18 are strongly advised not to drink.
Drinking alcohol puts you at a greater risk of:
- Injury
- Sexual Assault
- Unsafe sex
Adults are advised to drink no more than one standard drink per hour, and no more than two standard drinks per day, with some days of not drinking during the week. One standard drink is 10g of pure alcohol, but most drinks you get a bar or bottle shop are more than one standard drink. This chart shows the number of standard drinks in common alcoholic beverages.
It is against the law to drive if your blood alcohol level is above .05, you should also protect yourself and never get in a car with a driver who is drunk. Different people are affected by alcohol differently, but generally, to stay below .05 blood alcohol:
- Men can have two standard drinks in the first hour of drinking and one drink each hour after that.
- Women can drink one drink in the first hour and then drink one drink each hour after that.
Women who are pregnant or breastfeeding are advised not to drink.
Drinking a few drinks daily or drinking a lot often can cause long term health problems.
If you are out for a big night with friends, drink water or soft drinks in between alcoholic drinks and remember to eat before or while you’re out, this will help to keep you safer and also make the next day less painful!
If someone has acted violently towards you or assaulted you while they, or you have been drinking alcohol, you can call the police on 000 or one of the counselling services listed on this website.
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