Brit drinkers ignorant of alcohol units

By Staff
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Google Oneindia News

London, May 20 : A majority of drinkers in the UK are not aware about how many units of alcohol they consume daily, reveals an online poll.

The YouGov survey conducted over 1,429 drinkers has shown that more than a third did not know their recommended daily limit was 2-3 units for women and 3-4 units for men.

Among the respondents half admitted having alcohol at least two or three times a week.

While 82 pct agreed that they knew what a unit of alcohol was, but 77 pct did not know how many units were in a typical large glass of wine.

About 55 pct thought a large glass of wine would contain two units, when it actually contains three.

Nearly three out of five did not know a double gin and tonic contains two units.

The data also showed that more than a third did not know that an average pint of beer contained more than two units, while some strong ones contained three units.

And only 36 pct of women and 50 pct of men knew their recommended daily drinking limits were 2-3 units and 3-4 units respectively.

Public Health Minister Dawn Primarolo said people are not necessarily aware of how much they drink and how much it can harm their health.

"Glass sizes have grown larger and the strength of many wines and beers has increased, so it's no wonder some of us have lost track of our alcohol consumption," BBC quoted Primarolo, as saying.

"We aim to give people the facts about how many units are in different drinks in a non-judgemental way. Then they can then make their own assessments about how much they want to drink in the future," she added.

Royal College of General Practitioners chairman Professor Steve Field said: "When it comes to alcohol GPs are used to hearing half truths about half measures.

"People need to have a better grasp of how much they're drinking by adding up their units.

"Alcohol can be a major contributing factor in many health disorders so it's vital that people think about how much alcohol they drink," he said.

Joe Korner, from The Stroke Association, said that they fully support efforts to create awareness among people of the health risks associated with excessive drinking.

"There are around 1,100 haemorrhagic stroke deaths every year associated with alcohol and statistics show that women who drink over double their recommended limits are more than four times likely to suffer a stroke, and men almost twice as likely," he said.

Even Mark Hastings, of the British Beer and Pub Association said insists on providing full support for giving people information on which to make their own decisions.

ANI

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