Effects of Moderate Drinking

While drinking in moderation seems to be harmless, there are some potential consequences to be aware of. Understanding the effects of moderate drinking can help you stay safe, avoid these consequences, and keep your drinking habits safe.

What Is Considered Moderate?

Understanding the effects of moderate drinking is important. However, for that information to be helpful, you will also need to understand what drinking level is considered moderate.

Consuming no more than one drink a day for women and two drinks a day for men is considered to be a moderate level of drinking. Drinking more than that is considered excessive drinking. If you stick to drinking moderately, the potential for developing an alcohol addiction is much less than it would be if you drank more. However, addictions can still develop through moderate drinking.

Short-Term Effects

Even moderate consumption of alcohol increases the chances of incurring short-term damage or harm. When you are consuming alcohol, your motor functions are slowed, and your decision-making processes are altered. It can be easy to deflect ideas of the potential consequences of risky actions and have increased courage to engage in risky behaviors. This can cause immediate harm and is an important risk to consider before drinking, even if that drinking is only done in moderation.

In addition to the heightened potential of incurring injury or other harm from increased risk-taking while the alcohol is in your system, you have a chance of developing a hangover the day after moderate drinking. As you consume alcohol, your body works to get rid of the ethanol, which acts as a poison to the body. In an attempt to get rid of this, your body can become extremely dehydrated or feel ill in the form of a hangover. While there is often no long-term damage from a mild hangover, it can cause significant discomfort and lack of productivity while you are experiencing it.

Long-Term Effects

As well as short-term harm, there is also a potential for negative side effects that may arise if you continue drinking in moderation over a long period. Moderate drinking every once in a while will likely not lead to any long-term damage. However, consistently engaging in this consumption level can lead to long-term health effects such as cancer or cardiovascular disease.

As well as the potential health and psychological effects at play, the risk of developing an addiction is increased if you consistently engage in moderate drinking. While the amount itself may not seem drastic on any given day, the consistency of the action can still lead to the onset of addiction.

Psychological Effects

Consistently engaging in moderate drinking can cause psychological harm that may be difficult to undo. If moderate drinking becomes a habit, the body can develop a tolerance to the amount you are drinking. Once your tolerance levels increase, you will likely feel a desire to consume more alcohol to feel the same desired effects. This is one of the major concerns with addiction and indicates that the problem is becoming severe.

It may not seem to be that bad to have three drinks rather than two, and then eventually four rather than three. However, as you slowly begin to increase this amount, the short-term negative effects may begin to decrease, which is dangerous. Getting used to drinking a certain amount of alcohol can eliminate the effects of hangovers the following day, reinforcing the positive feelings from drinking and making addiction more difficult to avoid or escape.

Social Effects

As well as the physical consequences of addiction, there is also a social aspect involved with alcoholism. While going out with friends for a few drinks can be enjoyable on occasion, frequent social drinking can reinforce positive feelings from addiction and thus be problematic. Also, if moderate drinking becomes a habit, it can become difficult to differentiate the situations that are okay to drink in and situations where it is impolite.

Moderate drinking habits can influence your job performance and may lead to unemployment if not properly managed. If you do feel hungover frequently, your work will likely be affected. Alcohol slows our motor functions and abilities to process information. These hindrances can lead to issues in the workplace.

Avoiding the Consequences

One way to ensure you are not developing the habit of consistent moderate drinking is to limit your drinking to special occasions. If you only engage in moderate drinking over a birthday, wedding, holiday, or special celebration, you will be less likely to develop an addiction to alcohol. When moderate drinking becomes a natural engagement during your alone time or your social time, the desire to drink is reinforced. Limiting your drinking to special occasions can allow you to enjoy a couple of drinks without going overboard or developing a habit.

Drinking less or not at all is always safe and is recommended in many situations. If you work to avoid reaching the state of full intoxication, you will not need to consume a large amount of alcohol during each occasion. If you do not have a history of addiction, having a drink or two to loosen up and have fun can be okay on occasion, but drinking should always be regulated with caution.

Moderate drinking can be fun at times. However, if not controlled, there can be many risks involved with drinking even a moderate amount. Being aware of what moderate drinking is and using strategies to avoid reaching the point of dependence or increased tolerance is essential. Failure to drink safely could potentially result in the development of an addiction. There are many short-term and long-term consequences involved with moderate drinking that are important to consider. If you find that you struggle with the act of moderate drinking, we recommend reviewing this information and understanding the risk at hand. If you notice signs of addiction beginning to develop or moderate drinking becomes a habit, reach out for help immediately before it becomes more severe. To learn more about the potential effects of moderate alcohol consumption, reach out to Dream Recovery today at (949) 732-1960.