alcohol guidelines – alcohol free days – dependence

16 Jan alcohol guidelines – alcohol free days – dependence

Updated: 21 July 2026

The NHMRC (National Health and Medical Research Council) alcohol guidelines  recommend that to reduce the risk of harm from alcohol-related disease or injury, healthy men and women should drink no more than 10 standard drinks a week and no more than 4 standard drinks on any one day. The less you drink, the lower your risk of harm from alcohol. [1]

Healthy adults drinking within the guideline recommendations have less than a 1 in 100 chance of dying from an alcohol-related condition.[2]

It is interesting. But I realised over the weekend why it was that doctors and the NHRMC used to recommend two alcohol free days. It is actually not recommended because it reduces the risk of life time risk of alcohol related harm. Even though two alcohol free days a week does reduce overall consumption and therefore lowers the risk.

The benefits of two alcohol free days a week

The reason that this was recommended and is still recommended in the UK, is because it can reduce the risk of becoming psychologically or physically dependent on alcohol. Even if you drink a small amount of alcohol each day, you may have developed a dependence on alcohol. And this is similar to the way you can get addicted to a small amount (or larger amounts for some people) of coffee every morning.

Try it and give it a go. Try an alcohol free day and see how you feel! You might sleep better. Your body is used to a certain dose. And when it does not get what it is used to you might get some of the symptoms of physical or psychological alcohol dependence shown on this page.

The best way to reduce this risk is to abstain from alcohol on two days of the week. It can have the effect of resetting the tolerance that builds up from habitual drinking. Read more about alcohol free days here. I think it is a great idea!!

References:

1. 1. Australian Government, 2022. ‘Australian Alcohol Guidelines revised’, Department of Health, Disability and Ageing. Viewed at < https://www.health.gov.au/news/australian-alcohol-guidelines-revised > Accessed July 21, 2026.
   2. 2. Eat For Health, 2013, ‘Alcohol’, Australian Government. Viewed at < https://www.eatforhealth.gov.au/food-essentials/fat-salt-sugars-and-alcohol/alcohol >Accessed July 21, 2026.