New Guidelines Suggest Only One Drink Per Day for Men
According to Politico, the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee will recommend that men cut back their drinking. Instead of limiting themselves to two drinks per day, the committee will present new guidelines suggesting that men only have one drink per day. This would mean that both men and women would have the same recommendation, limiting alcohol intake to one drink per day for a healthier lifestyle.
The committee is also recommending, according to the Politico article, that “Americans should also further cut back on added sugars.” Alcohol can have a significant amount of added sugars that can contribute to growing health problems in the United States. The article notes that the recommendations come after increases in death rates across the board.
While this is only a draft of the recommendations presented by the committee, many are hopeful that they will make it into the 2020 guidelines. According to the reporting “The final scientific advisory report is expected to be publicly released in mid-July.” The report will be used by the United States Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health and Human Services to issue the updated “Dietary Guidelines for Americans.”
The results of these recommendations could be to redefine what it means to drink in moderation, as existing guidelines allow for men to drink up to two alcoholic beverages per day and women to drink one.
Health problems related to obesity and heavy alcohol consumption continue to plague the country. It is believed that alcohol consumption is the third leading preventable cause of death behind tobacco use and poor diet and physical inactivity according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.
Read the full Politico story: “Men should cut back on booze, federal panel says.”