PlayMummy stop drinking
Published: Friday, 29 February 2008, 4:42PM
Anne Collins drinks a few glasses of wine most evenings during the week and a bottle at the weekends, but she’d never classify herself as a binge drinker or someone who has a drinking problem.
Like many busy mums, she thinks of her daily tipple as a nice way to relax.
Anne, whose three children now range in age from 10 to 15, explains: “It became a habit when the children were young. I can remember when they were all very young, and Aaron had just started school and Brooke was two and Euan was in his rocker, and I can remember being in the bedroom with my foot on the rocker, sort of listening to Aaron read and doing something with Brooke and you know you’re just like, ‘Oh, I need a glass of wine!’”
But could Anne unknowingly be drinking dangerous amounts for her health and underestimating the impact that her drinking has on her family?
Britain’s binge-drinking youth culture is very much in the spotlight, however, new evidence suggests that equally destructive patterns of drinking exist among middle class, middle aged mothers.
Deaths from chronic liver disease have increased by eight times in men aged 35 - 44 years and seven times in women, over the past three decades. And the science suggests that woman take more risks than men when consuming alcohol, as research shows they become drink dependent more quickly than men and suffer more harm to their bodies.
But how much alcohol is too much? Tonight reporter Nicky Taylor endeavours to find out through a unique experiment.
Nicky, who enjoys a few glasses of wine most evenings herself, along with Anne Collins and another mum allow their children to film their drinking routines for a week.
Medical experts also carry out a number of health checks, including liver function tests to see if their alcohol consumption has had any negative side effects.
And then the mums are then given an assessment by both their kids and the health professionals on whether or not they drink too much, with shocking results.
Useful information
Alcohol units: To find out how many units you are drinking each week go to Drink Aware: http://www.drinkaware.co.uk/how-many-units.html
The Department of Health has general information on alcohol misuse including safe drinking levels and useful links on its website: http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publichealth/Healthimprovement/Alcoholmisuse/Alcoholmisusegeneralinformation/index.htm
Alcohol addiction/ problems
Drinkline: If you’re concerned about your own drinking or the drinking of someone you know call Drinkline’s helpline - 0800 917 8282. It’s a free phone number and you will be offered advice over the phone and also told about local support services in your area.
NHS Choices is a website is designed to help you make choices about your health, and through the practical aspects of finding and using NHS services. It includes tips on cutting down alcohol intake and personal stories highlighting the damage that booze can do: http://www.nhs.uk/magazines/alcohol/Pages/Alcoholhomepage.aspx
Alcohol Concern is the national voluntary agency that raises awareness about alcohol misuse as well as campaigning for better services for people with alcohol-related problems: http://www.alcoholconcern.org.uk/
Alcoholics Anonymous can be contacted on 0845 769 7555.
The website is www.alcoholics-anonymous.org.uk
Al-Anon is an organisation offering help and support to families and friends of alcoholics – www.al-anon.org.uk. It has a helpline open from 10am to 10pm – 0207 403 0888. People living in Scotland can contact the helpline on 0141 339 8884 and people living in Northern Ireland can contact the helpline on 028 9068 2368. Al-Anon also has a section for teenagers called Alateen - www.al-anonuk.org.uk/alateen/index.asp.
Children
Emma Spiegler’s website is called Children of Addicted Parents and People:
Emma says: “In 2006 I founded the website to provide children with something that I did not have as I was growing up. It’s for young people to talk about their concerns and fears about a person who is abusing drugs and alcohol, or is addicted to some form of behaviour. I felt like I had no-one to talk too who understood. And I don’t want others to feel like there is no-one to talk to.”
The National Association for Children of Alcoholics can be contacted at:
PO Box 64, Fishponds, Bristol BS16 2UH
Helpline: 0800 358 3456
Website: www.nacoa.org.uk
Mothers
Netmums is a unique local network for Mums (or Dads), offering a wealth of parenting information on both a national and local level: http://www.netmums.com/
Liver Health
The British Liver Trust is the national charity for adults with liver disease. If you have any worries about your liver health call the British Liver Trust's free medical helpline on 0800 652 7330, visit the website on http://www.britishlivertrust.org.uk/
You can also visit your GP to get a free liver function test.
LiverCheck from Yorktest Laboratories is a new home liver blood test available directly to the public.
· Ideal for adults who may have specific liver health worries
· Simple finger-prick test that can be done easily at home
· Full laboratory analysis of your blood sample
· Comprehensive results pack delivered to your home
· Special launch price £99 (£150 RRP)
To request a FREE LiverCheck booklet:
call on free phone number 0800 1300 588 or visit their website: www.livercheck.co.uk
Books:
The Secret Disease of Addiction by Jane Allen: http://www.thesecretdiseaseofaddiction.com/
Beat the Booze – a comprehensive guide to combating drink problems in all walks of life – by Edmund & Helen Tirbutt: www.beatthebooze.com
Age Progression Photographs:
Photographs have been produced by Missing People. Missing People (formerly National Missing Persons Helpline) has produced photos of how continued use of alcohol abuse affects age progression. It is the UK's only charity that works with young runaways, missing and unidentified people, their families and others who care for them: http://www.missingpeople.org.uk/
ARE YOU DRINKING TOO MUCH?
AUDIT QUESTIONNAIRE
Keep track of the number of points assigned to each answer and add up the numbers at the end of the questionnaire.
1. How often do you have a drink containing alcohol?
0 – Never
1 – Monthly or less
2 – Two/Three times per month
3 – Two/Three times per week
4 – Four or more times per week
2. How many drinks do you have on a typical day when you are drinking?
0 – None
1 – One or Two
2 – Three or Four
3 – Five or Six
4 – Seven/Nine
3. How often do you have 6 or more drinks on one occasion?
0 – Never
1 – Less than monthly
2 – Monthly
3 – Weekly
4 – Daily or almost daily
4. How often during the last year have you found that you were not able to stop drinking once you had started?
0 – Never
1 – Less than monthly
2 – Monthly
3 – Weekly
4 – Daily or almost daily
5. How often during the last year have you failed to do what was normally expected from you because of drinking?
0 – Never
1 – Less than monthly
2 – Monthly
3 – Weekly
4 – Daily or almost daily
6. How often during the last year have you needed a first drink in the morning to get yourself going after a heavy drinking session?
0 – Never
1 – Less than monthly
2 – Monthly
3 – Weekly
4 – Daily or almost daily
7. How often during the last year have you had a feeling of guilt or remorse after drinking?
0 – Never
1 – Less than monthly
2 – Monthly
3 – Weekly
4 – Daily or almost daily
8. How often during the last year have you been unable to remember what happened the night before because you have been drinking?
0 – Never
1 – Less than monthly
2 – Monthly
3 – Weekly
4 – Daily or almost daily
9. Have you or someone else been injured as a result of your drinking?
0 – Never
2 – Yes, but not in the last year
4 – Yes, during the last year
10. Has a relative or friend, or a doctor or other health worker been concerned about your drinking or suggested you cut down?
0 – Never
2 – Yes, but not in the last year
4 – Yes, during the last year
A score of eight or more indicates that you are drinking hazardous amounts and that you may have an alcohol dependence issue.