I heard a shocking thing on the radio today.
Yet, I don’t know why it was so shocking, I’ve often had the thought myself. I guess, hearing it out loud over the airwaves validated my feelings about the issue.
Is wine drinking the acceptable alcoholism?
I don’t mean having a glass of wine a few times a month or even once a week. Wine, in moderation is considered to have health benefits. I’m only referring to the need to drink it on a steady basis.
It’s the drink after work ,then another with dinner, then another while watching tv, that I’m referring to.
I’ve been to a lot of playdates where more than one parent had a glass or two of wine. I didn’t think anything of it initially, but as my friendship with some of these parents grew, I realized that that one drink, was just one of many throughout each day.
This brings me to my main point. In todays social media world, you see a lot of memes and videos dedicated to wine drinking. As if wine is a treat for good behavior or the only way to relieve stress from life. There are whole video series dedicated to wine drinking while talking about various issues.
It isn’t just social media and it isn’t limited to just wine, in television and movies the message is the same. Rich or high powered individuals have wet bars in their offices and homes and seem to have a never empty glass of something in their hands. I think if most of us had Scotch or Gin at work we would be fired on the spot.
Do these types of things send out the message that drinking a lot is the norm? That it’s not a big deal.
Are you a high functioning alcoholic?
WebMD has a good article with the above title , that explains some of the signs for this condition. I was surprised at the amount of drinks per week that are considered normal. According to the article, for women, 7 drinks per week and for men, 14 were the limits.
The National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) links to a good research article in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine titled, Drinking Beyond the Binge Threshold: Predictors, Consequences, and Changes in the U.S.
Research articles are pretty boring to read so I’ll sum it up –> Binge drinking is bad for your health, leads to poor life choices and is on the rise in the U.S.
How much do you really drink?
That’s the big question. How much alcohol is really getting into your system on a weekly basis?
It can be sneaky, like snacking. You have a few M&Ms here, and a bite of your kid’s chicken nuggets there, and maybe a few chips later on. Before you know it, you’ve had an extra couple hundred calories worth of mindless snacking that you didn’t realize was happening.
That could easily happen with alcohol as well.
In general, do we even know exactly what a serving size is. I have a basic understanding of how much chicken or potatoes I can have, but I couldn’t tell you the ounces.
Free Printable Alcohol Tracker
If you have a loved one that could benefit from this tracker, print it out for them and just give it to them. If they don’t use it, at least you tried.
North Carolina, USA
Phew I guess I was self conscious. I think I average 1 or 2 glasses per week when I’m not dieting. More only if I’m on vacation or out for dinner with friends. I didn’t realize the average was so high!