Trying a dry month or simply cutting down?
Many people drink alcohol because it is there. # Stock up on alternative non-alcoholic drinks. # Tonic water with ice and lemon. # Try syrups - but beware the sugar content. # try a non-alcoholic spirit such as Seedlip, a refreshing gin replacement. # Buy half-bottles of wine.
Going out? Ask for your soft drinks to be served in a wine glass - it stops people asking why you are not drinking, plus it is somehow satisfying to hold the stem of a glass.
Be mindful. Before opening a bottle, ask yourself if you are anxious, bored or lonely. Try to deal with these feelings in a positive way rather than numbing them with alcohol. # Plan distractions like going for a walk, having a relaxing bath or chatting to a friend. # Start a drinking diary and note down what you drink, and when and why.
Many people drink in social situations because of anxiety. # Try slipping into parties late, when awkward small talk if over and the mood is more relaxed. # Socialise at brunch and breakfast as there is no expectation to drink. # Plan your alcohol drink choice in advance, so you are not put on the spot and panic and agree to wine.
Make a list of all the reasons you want to give up for a while and refer to the list when willpower weakens.
Source: Item in Good Housekeeping, Feb. 2018
Showing posts with label Alcohol. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Alcohol. Show all posts
Monday, 30 April 2018
Friday, 2 September 2016
A New Way to Manage Alcoholism
The recommended treatment for
chronic alcoholism is abstinence. But in Ottawa, Canada, a new approach called the Managed Alcohol Program (MAP) aims to change the drinking behaviour of inveterate addicts.
Started in 2001 by a group of health professionals around 15 years ago, it aims to help those who have tried to stop drinking and failed. If their lives could be stabilized, (the day that begins with the search for alcohol and all the complications that occur with that), then better help could be given with their mental health, addiction to alcohol and physical illnesses.
MAP is run by a partnership of two NGOs - the Shepherds of Good Hope, and Ottawa Inner City Health. It began in the Shepherds' homeless hostel downtown, and the Oaks (a hotel converted into a permanent home for those who once lived on the streets) which opened in 2010. But the approach is controversial.
The Oaks has a waiting list. Before being accepted, potential residents must prove they can live within the rules of the Managed Alcohol Program. The Shepherds' hostel downtown is a 12-bed unit, but the atmosphere is far less benign than at the Oaks.
The residents of the Oaks, a converted hotel, are mostly middle-aged or older, their health fragile due to a lifetime of drinking. Here nearly 50 residents are given a measure of Californian white wine (13% alcohol, made on the premises) at hourly intervals. The first 'pour' of the day at 7.30am is a kickstarter of 7oz (nearly 200ml, a larger-than-average sized glass of wine in Europe). For the rest of the day until 9.30pm, they are given 5oz - just over 140ml. If anyone shows signs of intoxication, they will not be served.
Residents contribute to the cost of their keep - and the wine - through pensions and state benefits. In the common area and the courtyard outside they chat with their friends, play cards and just sit. There is a TV room, a computer, outings and shopping trips, a gentle keep-fit class. This calm, stable environment has enabled some to re-establish contact with families; others are hoping to volunteer or even go back to work. Inuit residents have formed a task force to compile information for homeless people like them.
Lifelong alcoholics are an enormous drain on public resources. Dr Jeff Turnbull, one of those early innovators, and the chief of staff at Ottawa Hospital said "One of our clients was in the emergency department 191 times in the six months preceding coming onto the MAP, and that was just in our hospital. He could've been in other healthcare facilities during that time as well." No one study about the MAP has crunched the numbers fully, but it is not unrealistic to assume that the city of Ottawa has saved millions of dollars. "There's a profound reduction in 911 calls, hospital emergency visits, paramedic and police encounters" says Dr Turnbull.
Source: Treating alcohoics - with wine: by Linda Pressly, BBC News, Ottawa (7 July 2016)
Started in 2001 by a group of health professionals around 15 years ago, it aims to help those who have tried to stop drinking and failed. If their lives could be stabilized, (the day that begins with the search for alcohol and all the complications that occur with that), then better help could be given with their mental health, addiction to alcohol and physical illnesses.
MAP is run by a partnership of two NGOs - the Shepherds of Good Hope, and Ottawa Inner City Health. It began in the Shepherds' homeless hostel downtown, and the Oaks (a hotel converted into a permanent home for those who once lived on the streets) which opened in 2010. But the approach is controversial.
The Oaks has a waiting list. Before being accepted, potential residents must prove they can live within the rules of the Managed Alcohol Program. The Shepherds' hostel downtown is a 12-bed unit, but the atmosphere is far less benign than at the Oaks.
The residents of the Oaks, a converted hotel, are mostly middle-aged or older, their health fragile due to a lifetime of drinking. Here nearly 50 residents are given a measure of Californian white wine (13% alcohol, made on the premises) at hourly intervals. The first 'pour' of the day at 7.30am is a kickstarter of 7oz (nearly 200ml, a larger-than-average sized glass of wine in Europe). For the rest of the day until 9.30pm, they are given 5oz - just over 140ml. If anyone shows signs of intoxication, they will not be served.
Residents contribute to the cost of their keep - and the wine - through pensions and state benefits. In the common area and the courtyard outside they chat with their friends, play cards and just sit. There is a TV room, a computer, outings and shopping trips, a gentle keep-fit class. This calm, stable environment has enabled some to re-establish contact with families; others are hoping to volunteer or even go back to work. Inuit residents have formed a task force to compile information for homeless people like them.
Lifelong alcoholics are an enormous drain on public resources. Dr Jeff Turnbull, one of those early innovators, and the chief of staff at Ottawa Hospital said "One of our clients was in the emergency department 191 times in the six months preceding coming onto the MAP, and that was just in our hospital. He could've been in other healthcare facilities during that time as well." No one study about the MAP has crunched the numbers fully, but it is not unrealistic to assume that the city of Ottawa has saved millions of dollars. "There's a profound reduction in 911 calls, hospital emergency visits, paramedic and police encounters" says Dr Turnbull.
Source: Treating alcohoics - with wine: by Linda Pressly, BBC News, Ottawa (7 July 2016)
Wednesday, 25 March 2015
Alcohol
Woman are more vulnerable to alcohol than men. We have more fat and less water than men, so we absorb more alcohol, get drunk more quickly and are more susceptable to its toxic effects. It's not just hangovers - alcohol affects immunity, making you more prone to infections in the short term, and in the long term raising the risk of breast, bowel, stomach, mouth and liver cancers, high blood pressure, stroke, alcohol-related liver disease and osteoporosis.
Experts say risk is low if you stick to recommended limits. Want (or need) to cut down?
Experts say risk is low if you stick to recommended limits. Want (or need) to cut down?
- Ask for a small glass in wine bars and pubs. Since October 2010, alcohol retailers are obliged by law to offer customers a choice of small measures beer, cider, spirits and wine. So if you want a 125ml glass of wine, that's what you should get.
- Rediscover spritzers or add a mixer to make your drink last longer.
- Go for lower alcohol wines. New World wines (hotter climates) tend to be stronger than those from the cooler climes of Northern Europe. With fizz, northern Italian Proseccos are typically weaker than Champagne.
- Take a break between drinks and have a soft drink or water.
- Only drink with a meal - not before or after you have eaten.
- If you feel like a drink, try having a cup of tea or coffee first - you may not feel like a drink afterwards.
- Have a dry month. It will reduce your tolerance for alcohol when you start drinking again.
- Either confine drinking to the weekend, or have at least three alcohol-free days a week.
Friday, 6 June 2014
Alcohol Intake
Wine
There is no evidence to support drinking wine for medicinal purposes. Anything more than a quarter of a glass is drunk for pleasure rather than health reasons. The level of resveratol in red wine is so tiny there is really no health benefit of red over white wine, or wine in general at all.
There is no evidence to support drinking wine for medicinal purposes. Anything more than a quarter of a glass is drunk for pleasure rather than health reasons. The level of resveratol in red wine is so tiny there is really no health benefit of red over white wine, or wine in general at all.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)