Health. Are we drinking too much?

While men still drink more than women in terms of volume, the female population is catching up fast. Over the last ten years alcohol consumption in women has increased dramatically, with the result that Scots women are drinking more now than ever before.

Women's health

But are we paying a higher price for our drinking culture than we realise? Whilst many of us may be familiar with the well-known dangers of drinking too much, many women are unaware of the other very real risks of excessive alcohol consumption.

It's easy to dismiss warnings about the effect alcohol can have on our health - let's face it we all underestimate how much we actually drink. Even if we do stop to think about it, most of us downplay the risks. But the levels at which alcohol can have a detrimental effect on your health might be a lot lower than you think.

As women put off having children to later in life, news of the effect alcohol can have on your fertility can be worrying. But the evidence is there. In fact some experts believe that drinking more than just one glass of wine a day can decrease your chances of conceiving.

Alcohol and Fertility

This news certainly came as a shock to 34 year old Nicola, a teacher in Inverness: "I got married when I was 26 but we were having far too much fun to even think about having children until a couple of years ago. When we did start trying for a baby I just assumed I'd get pregnant straight away. But after a year of nothing happening I went to the doctor to see if there might be anything wrong. My GP started asking me about my lifestyle and health history. She asked me about how much I drank and I told her - like most people I drank a fair bit in my twenties, I was out having fun, working hard and playing hard too. But since I started trying to conceive I'd cut down and maybe drank one or two times a week. She told me that my alcohol consumption may have had an effect on my fertility. I was gobsmacked. I felt terrible, like I was being made to pay the price for my lifestyle when I was younger".

"When you're young you feel invincible and it's hard to take sensible drinking advice seriously."

In the end, Nicola managed to conceive naturally before any medical intervention was required, but she thinks more young women should be aware of the hidden impact their drinking could be having: "When you're young you feel invincible and it's hard to take sensible drinking advice seriously. But I really think if young women knew about things like the effect their drinking could be having on their ability to get pregnant they might think twice about how much they drink".

Alcohol and Cancer

Siobhan, who works as a legal secretary for an Edinburgh law firm, also believes that more women should be aware of what their drinking is doing to their body: "We have a history of breast cancer in our family - my grandmother and my aunt have both had it. I was chatting to my GP about my family history because I wanted to know if there was anything I should be doing to protect myself. As well as genetic risks we talked about lifestyle factors and she said that alcohol has been linked to breast cancer. It took me by surprise - I never knew the two had been linked. Ever since I've been careful - I still enjoy a drink but I just make sure I stick to the sensible limits. At least I know I'm not putting myself at unnecessary risk".