• Some of the Benefits of Drinking Less Alcohol
• Calories and Alcohol
• Looking after your Liver
• Top Ten Tips for Drinking Less Alcohol
• Where to Get More Help

Changing alcohol habits can help people to have more energy for physical activity, stop smoking, sleep better, and lose weight.

Most people in the North West are unaware of the serious illnesses caused by drinking more than the lower risk levels. A recent survey revealed that:

• 85% of people did not realise it increases the risk of developing breast cancer
• 61% did not realise it increases the risk of bowel cancer
• 55% did not realise it increases the risk of mouth, throat and neck cancer
• 34% did not realise it reduces fertility
• 26% did not realise it increases the risk of high blood pressure

People who are overweight and regularly drink alcohol also increase the chances of damaging their liver. This is because fat builds up as a result of what they eat as well as what they drink.

Did you know that a glass of wine has about the same amount of calories as a bag of crisps? How about a pint of lager – surprised to hear it has nearly as many calories as a hamburger?

All of our favourite tipples are made by fermenting sugar from yeast. This means that alcoholic drinks contain a lot of calories which can quickly add up to our daily calorie allowance.

The following table gives examples of some common drinks and their calorie equivalent in food items.

And this doesn’t include the salty snacks in the pub, chips on the way home, or fry-ups the morning-after!

A healthy liver can only break down 1 unit of alcohol every hour so a large glass of wine (3.5 units) could take at least 3½ hours to be totally removed from the body.

The liver breaks down the alcohol into water, gas (carbon dioxide) and fat. Your body then stores the fat in your liver - but there should be little or no fat in a healthy liver.

• When too much of this fat builds up it can lead in the first instance to fatty liver disease.
• If you have a fatty liver and continue to drink, you have up to a 1 in 3 chance of getting alcoholic hepatitis.

At both these stages, you can help your liver to recover by stopping or cutting down on your drinking.

• The final stage of alcoholic liver disease is cirrhosis. This is usually the result of long-term, continuous damage to the liver. If you have cirrhosis, your liver cannot fully recover.

For more information about looking after your liver, visit British Liver Trust or speak to your GP.

1. Switch to a lower strength drinks (% abv) or smaller measures
2. If you are thirsty, have an alcohol free drink first and in-between alcoholic drinks
3. When bored or stressed try doing some exercise instead of drinking
4. Avoid pouring yourself a drink as soon as you get home
5. Eat before drinking alcohol as feeling full often slows down your drinking
6. When you do drink, set yourself a limit and stick to it
7. Find out how your drinking habits compare to the lower risk drinking limits visit NHS Choices for a quick self-assessment
8. Make sure you have two alcohol-free days in a row every week to give your liver a break
9. Let friends and family know you are trying to drink less
10. Don’t hesitate to get extra support along the way to help you keep on track

There are several organisations in Manchester which can help you start drinking less or think about having time off.

For more information, click here
http://www.gettingmanchestermoving.org/gmm/links.html