How Much Should Women Drink Per Week?

Brit + Co interviewed Sarah Suzuki on moderate drinking guidelines (Check out the full interview here.):

“The problem with this restrictive guideline is that a lot of women might think, That’s not for me. I guess I’ll take the chance.’ It doesn’t offer flexibility for harm reduction,” Suzuki says. “There’s a big difference in health outcome if someone can reduce their drinking from 20 drinks per week to 12 drinks per week.”

Suzuki instead prefers the recommendations for low-risk drinking from the NIAAA. While these guidelines still cap consumption at seven drinks per week for women, they allow more room on a day-to-day basis – specifically, up to three drinks in a given day.

“It’s more approachable to say, ‘Okay, I won’t drink more than three drinks on any day and I can have up to seven drinks per week,’ which offers flexibility,” says Suzuki.

Sarah Suzuki, AM, LCSW, CADC

Sarah Suzuki, AM, LCSW, CADC

Hi, I'm Sarah, and I'm a counselor who helps high-achieving men learn how to moderate their drinking. I currently offer counseling services and corporate training here at Chicago Compass Counseling. If you're interested, you can read more about me on my about page.