Festive drinking habits go online

Dec 18 2009 by Alison Rennie, Paisley Daily Express

BUDDIES’ drinking habits over the festive season are to be made public on a special website.

Drinkaware has launched a national review of festive drinking habits.

The alcohol awareness charity estimates at least 59 million units of alcohol will be consumed by Scots throughout December.

And to determine the extent of British festive drinking, it is asking people to log on to their website and input what they’ve had to drink in the last 24 hours.

The total in Glasgow will then be compared to festive totals from London, Leeds and Birmingham.

Chris Sorek, Chief Executive of Drinkaware, says: “For many people, December and the festive season is a time for getting together with loved ones and celebrating over a drink or two, or even more.

“It might feel like party time, but it’s still really important to keep track of how much you’re drinking – the long-term effects of drinking to excess can last for much longer than Christmas.

“Although it seems an enormous amount, it’s likely that 59million units is actually an underestimate of how much alcohol Scottish adults will slug over the festive season.

“Conducting an experiment to find out what Britain is drinking this Christmas will encourage people to think about how much they’ve had to drink over the last 24 hours and help to educate them about units at the same time.”

To take part in the experiment, go to the website www.drinkaware.co.uk until the end of December.