Binge Drinking

What is binge drinking?

Binge drinking is the term used to describe the consumption of several alcoholic beverages in a short period of time. Alcoholic beverages are divided into three general classes: beers, wines, and spirits (or distilled beverages). When you drink an alcoholic beverage, alcohol gets into your bloodstream and heads toward your liver.

On average, your liver can only process about one drink an hour (based on an adult weighing 68kg, consuming 10ml of pure alcohol). Having four or five drinks within in an hour is considered ‘binge drinking’. You can also stay sober for periods of time and then overindulge at parties or clubs. A pattern develops over time and is seen as a form of alcohol addiction with severe physical, psychological, social and financial consequences.

You may not consider yourself an alcoholic, but if you regularly drink too much, you can still do permanent damage to your brain and body. Alcohol is a drug… and that means if you drink regularly, you run the risk of developing substance use disorder.