Is drinking a little too much affecting your health?

The dangers of drinking excessively – including binge drinking – are well documented. But now the government is warning that drinking just slightly more than the recommended amount could increase your risk for serious health problems, including cancer, stroke and heart disease.

There are already TV ads running on behalf of the Change4Life campaign that warn of the consequences of drinking just over the recommended amounts, which are two to three units of alcohol for women and three to four for men.

Just drinking two large glasses of wine or two strong pints of beer a day on a regular basis could, for instance, triple your risk for mouth cancer and double your risk of having high blood pressure, the ads claim.

More than nine million drinkers in England alone are, says the government, putting their health at risk by regularly drinking over the recommended guidelines.

"This campaign highlights how easy it can be to use a glass of wine or beer to unwind at the end of a busy day, but these drinks stack up and can increase your risk of high blood pressure, cancer or liver disease," says Chief Medical Officer Professor Dame Sally Davies.

Details of a YouGov survey that suggests the health risks of drinking too much alcohol may not be as well understood as most of us might think have also been published. After quizzing 2,100 people the survey found that 85 percent don't realise drinking too much booze increases your risk of breast cancer, while 66 percent were in the dark about the link with bowel cancer risk and 59 percent had no clue that drinking too much increases your risk of mouth, throat and neck cancer too.

Thirty percent were also unaware that drinking too much can increase your risk of developing high blood pressure, which may lead to heart disease and stroke.
The Change4Life alcohol campaign coincides with news from the World Cancer Research Fund that suggests the number of cancer cases in the UK could rise by up to 30 percent by 2030 – an increase that's linked to an ageing population, higher levels of obesity and lower levels of exercise and higher alcohol consumption.

At the same time, the World Health Organisation has just announced that more than 30 percent of cancers could be prevented if people made changes to their lifestyles – with the key lifestyle risk factors named as tobacco and alcohol consumption, a lack of fruit and vegetables in the diet and a lack of exercise.

However, avoiding drinking to excess and binge drinking is one thing, but making sure you don't slip into the habit of drinking just a little bit more than you should may not be so easy. To help you cut down on your drinking, the Change4Life campaign suggests having more alcohol-free days, not drinking at home before going out, switching to low-alcohol or alcohol-free drinks and using smaller glasses.

As Secretary of State for Health, Andrew Lansley, says: "It is not just binge drinkers that damage their health. There are simple ways we can all cut down how much alcohol we drink if we need to."

Not sure if you're drinking too much? Find out by using the Change4Life Drinks Checkers.