New Delhi. Hazardous drinking or drinking more than that recommended by guidelines is common and is a public health problem, said Dr KK Aggarwal, President Heart Care Foundation of India. Currently, alcohol–use disorders are divided into two categories: alcohol abuse/harmful use and alcohol dependence.

Hazardous drinking is when a person drinks too much and is at risk but is not alcohol dependent.

In a study published in Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, Aalto and his colleagues analyzed data on 4,477 Finns, aged 30 to 64, who took part in a national health survey in 2000 and found the prevalence of hazardous drinking was 5.8 percent.

Men were defined as hazardous drinkers if they had 24 or more standard drinks a week during the preceding year, while women were hazardous drinkers if they had 16 or more standard drinks a week. Hazardous drinking is more common among men, people older than 40, unemployed people versus the employed, and those who were cohabiting, divorced or separated, or unmarried.

One Should Give his/her Liver a Holiday

The widespread Japanese social belief of giving the liver a holiday, a few days off from drinking each week, has been given credibility by a report published in American Journal of Epidemiology. According to the published report, for men who drink regularly and heavily, taking a break from alcohol for a couple of days each week may benefit their health,

In the study, men who drank heavily on all days of the week had a high mortality. In contrast, men who drank heavily the same amount of alcohol every week but less frequently had low mortality rates.

However, Dr. Aggarwal cautioned that the study does not mean that one can drink as long as he takes a ‘liver holiday’. Binge alcoholism is hazardous to health. Binge alcoholism is defined as having five or more pegs in one sitting.

Heavy drinking is defined as having more than 300 gm of alcohol per week. Benefit of liver holiday is only seen in people who are heavy drinkers. Giving liver a holiday may help regeneration of the liver damage caused due to heavy drinking.