The 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines published by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and U.S. Department of Agriculture suggests that alcohol should only be consumed by adults over the legal drinking age in moderation. The guidelines state that moderate drinking is one alcohol beverage per day for women and two alcoholic drinks per day for men.
Many people are unclear about what constitutes one alcoholic beverage. Table A9-1 of the dietary guidelines’ states that a one drink-equivalency of beer is 12 fl oz at 5% alcohol. The more alcohol by volume a beer or other alcoholic beverage, the higher the drink equivalency. For instance, 12 fl oz of beer at 9% alcohol would have a 1.8 drink equivalency.
While many patrons enjoy a healthy pour of a glass of wine, the guidelines show that a 5 fl oz glass of wine at 12% alcohol is equivalent to 1 drink. There are around five glasses of wine in a 750 ml bottle of wine.
Drink equivalency for distilled spirits is 1 drink for 1.5 fl oz of 40% alcohol. It becomes more complicated as you drink mixed beverages. A mixed drink can vary greatly depending on what is in the cocktail including the number of alcohols and amounts mixed.
High-risk drinking is defined by the dietary guidelines as four or more alcoholic drinks on any day for women and five or more drinks on any day for men. High-risk drinking can also be defined by the number of drinks a person consumes in a week: 8 or more drinks per week for women and 15 or more drinks per week for men.