EXCLUSIVE: Alcohol-related liver disease is now one of the leading causes of death in middle-aged women, with many of us unknowingly binge drinking – as one woman explains
When we say “binge drinking”, our minds often wander to bottomless brunches, where the booze is flowing freely for a set amount of time, or those pub nights when we find ourselves staggering home after a “heavy session”. However, what’s actually considered binge drinking might shock many of us.
While there’s no harm in enjoying a drink, experts recommend that we consume less than 14 units a week, with a 750ml bottle of wine costing us 10 units. For women, consuming more than six units in one go is deemed binge drinking. For men, it’s eight units – roughly equivalent to about four pints – consumed in a single session, according to Drinkaware.
Many social events revolve around having a drink, and phrases like “gin o’clock” and “it’s 5pm somewhere” are frequently used in advertising. This emphasis on alcohol could lead us to binge drink without even realising it, but the impact this can have on our health is concerning, especially for middle-aged women.
According to data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), women under the age of 45 are now dying from alcohol-related liver disease (ARLD) at higher rates than ever before. Sandra Parker, the sober coach behind Just The Tonic Coaching, has spoken out about the common misconceptions around drinking habits.
She explains: “A lot of people drink six units alone, or a bottle of wine at the weekend, and don’t really consider it binge drinking. People don’t realise it because it’s so normal, and we don’t know the danger. It’s often not until people start worrying about their health that they take action.”
Sandra also points out the disregard for official advice, saying: “I think the biggest problem is that people don’t really take much notice of the Government or health guidelines about what’s the safe amount to drink. People ignore the recommendations because so many other people are doing the same thing, and they don’t want to acknowledge them. If you find it hard to drink less, you’re going to look for evidence that those guidelines are too strict or that they’re not really something you should be too concerned about.”
Her own path to sobriety inspired her to set up Just The Tonic Coaching, aiming to help others explore their alcohol consumption, whether they choose to quit or simply cut down. Meanwhile, sports presenter and wellness advocate Orla Chennaoui embraced a life without alcohol a decade ago at 36, following the birth of her first child.
The former Sky News presenter, Orla, candidly shared: “I’d never really had hangovers until I had my daughter and I didn’t like it very much so I knew something had to go. And I wanted to be a really good mum.” She continued: “I knew I was drinking too much, even if I wasn’t binge drinking. You don’t tend to get to a stage where you want to stop drinking because you think you’re drinking the right amount! I was one of those people who went to the doctor and when they asked how many glasses of wine you drink a week, I would look up what was supposed to be healthy and sort of pretend I was in that range.”
“That experience made me think, ‘Perhaps I’m drinking more than is healthy for me.’ Looking back, I realise how much alcohol I was putting into my system and how much I was forcing my body and my liver to process. I think I was hurting myself a lot.”
Our bodies process around one unit of alcohol per hour, with a 175ml glass of wine containing around 2.3 units. The NHS states that drinking a large amount of alcohol, even over the course of a few days, can lead to a build-up of fats in the liver.
This is called alcoholic fatty liver disease and is the first stage of alcohol-related liver disease. Other stages of ARLD include alcoholic hepatitis and cirrhosis, which is where healthy liver tissue is replaced with damaged scar tissue. Statistics from the ONS show that in women aged between 39 and 45, liver disease is consistently in the top three causes of death each year.
Sandra, discussing the issue of alcohol consumption in women over 40, stated: “I think for people over 40, there’s a bigger problem – and if you look at women specifically, it’s the way we’ve been marketed to. The marketing for women has been quite intense. For example, there was the term ‘mummy’s milk’ about mums having a drink to cope with their kids.”
She also highlighted the pressure to drink in certain professions and how alcohol can become a coping mechanism for stress. “For example, I went to a gym and they’d hand out a glass of wine on a Friday,” Sandra added.
“At my hair salon, they would have a cocktail of the day. Everywhere you go, you’re encouraged to drink. Women are also targeted with alcohol advertisements – for example, alcopops were designed for younger people and women. Birthday cards for women often have gin or Prosecco on them. You could say that a cohort of people aged around 45-plus have been conditioned to these habits.”
Mum of two Orla candidly discusses the pressures of motherhood and alcohol, saying: “We talk about wine o’clock, or there’s a thing with mums, like, ‘You deserve it, you’ve to the end of the day and you deserve your glass of wine.’ It’s not our fault if we associate wine with all the good things in life, because that’s the messaging that’s been thrust upon us – and that’s quite toxic, really.”
She also shares her journey to sobriety, revealing: “I was finding the life I had before was not compatible with being a mum and that’s because my life, until then, was without much responsibility beyond work and a mortgage. When I became a mum, I realised that I couldn’t pack everything into my life the same way. My hormones changed as well.”
Reflecting on her drinking habits, Orla admits: “I didn’t think I was binge drinking. I associated binge drinking with something very deliberate, like going out on the lash – and sometimes I would decide to do that, but I’d never think, ‘I’m binge drinking tonight.’ No way would I have classed myself as a binge drinker. I would have seen myself as a regular drinker, which I thought was a bit more civilised.”
She adds: “I lived in central London for around eight years, so everything was on my doorstep. It was really easy to go out for drinks after work. I was really social and that meant going out for drinks or dinner. A lot of my social life revolved around drinking without me necessarily even realising it. It was just a big part of my life.”
Orla candidly revealed the impact of her decision to quit alcohol at 36, saying: “I didn’t really go out partying, I was just going to the pub or a restaurant – but I wouldn’t do that without having a glass of wine or a drink. The reality was, I was drinking most nights.”
She reflects on the positive changes since she stopped drinking: “My life is way more fun than it used to be,” and adds: “So much of drinking is a habit and so much of how we see fun is associated with that habit of drinking. I wasn’t used to going out without drinks, to dancing or eating out without a drink.
“All of that was hard, but I focused on what I wanted to get out of it, which was to be a person who could live without alcohol. I’ve been 10 years sober now and I’ve never thought my life would be better with alcohol – not once. If I thought that, I would just do it. I’m not living in misery for some self-inflicted reason. My life is just better without alcohol.”