Reduce Your Risks

Low-risk alcohol drinking helps to promote a culture of moderation and supports healthy lifestyles. If you choose to drink, these guidelines can help you decide when, where, why and how. 

Test your knowledge about alcohol consumption: Low-Risk Alcohol Drinking Guidelines Quiz

What is a "Standard Drink"?

Although alcohol comes in different forms, it has the same effect. Drinks come in different sizes and some are stronger than others. "Standard drinks" are a way to measure how much alcohol you drink. In the following table, each “standard” drink contains 13.6 grams of alcohol. 

A diagram portraying the standard drink size for beer, wine and spirits

Know your limits

Reduce your long-term health risks by drinking no more than:

  • 10 drinks a week if you were assigned female at birth (AFAB), with no more than 2 drinks a day most days
  • 15 drinks a week if you were assigned male at birth (AMAB), with no more than 3 drinks a day most days
  • Plan non-drinking days most days of every week to avoid developing a habit

Do not drink when you are:

  • Underaged. The legal drinking age in New Brunswick is 19
  • Driving a vehicle or using machinery and tools
  • Taking medicine or other drugs that interact with alcohol
  • Doing any kind of dangerous physical activity
  • Living with mental or physical health problems
  • Living with alcohol dependence
  • Pregnant or planning to be pregnant
  • Responsible for the safety of others
  • Making important decisions

For more information see Knowing Your Limits With Alcohol - A Practical Guide to Assessing Your Drinking 

Safer drinking tips

  • Limit the amount of alcohol you drink. Your risk of injury increases with every drink
  • Don't drink alcohol on an empty stomach. Eat before--and while--you drink
  • Drink slowly. Have no more than 2 drinks in any 3 hours
  • Alternate alcoholic beverages with alcohol-free drinks to limit the amount you drink in any three-hour period
  • Drink only if you want. Don't feel pressured into accepting a drink
  • Respect the rights of individuals who do not wish to drink
  • Don't drive. Instead take a taxi, SafeRide, public transportation, walk, SafeWalk or decide who will be the designated driver before you start drinking
  • Stay at a nearby friend's house if you can't get home
  • Never mix alcohol with caffeine or other drugs (medication or an illegal substance).  Mixing alcohol with other drugs can have unpredictable even fatal results
  • Never leave your drink unattended and beware of unfamiliar drinks
  • Never accept a drink from someone you don't know
  • Alcohol and sex do not mix - drunken sex is not consensual sex
  • Avoid drinking games

Special occasions

  • Drink no more than 3 drinks (AFAB) or 4 drinks (AMAB) on any single occasion
  • Plan to drink in a safe environment. Stay within the weekly limits outlined above

The risks of mixing caffeinated drinks with alcohol

Over the years, mixing caffeinated energy drinks with alcohol has become popular, especially among teenagers and young adults.

People may not feel the symptoms of intoxication when consuming caffeinated drinks mixed with alcohol, and the caffeine may mask the drowsiness associated with alcohol intake. This may increase the potential for overconsumption of alcohol, which could lead to:

  • alcohol poisoning;
  • dehydration; and
  • alcohol-related injury or death

A diagram representing the use of mixing alcohol and caffeine

Alcohol and driving

Driving Impaired

Alcohol induced impairment is the greatest contributing factor in many motor vehicle fatalities. Drivers who have consumed alcohol do not have complete control over themselves and therefore cannot be in control of a vehicle. Impaired driving is simply not worth the risk – not to the innocent people who may be involved in a crash and not to the individual making the choice to get behind the wheel impaired. 

  • Make smart choices by not mixing alcohol, drugs and driving
  • Educate your friends to stop mixing alcohol, drugs and driving
  • Plan ahead and take turns being a designated driver
  • Refuse to get into a vehicle driven by an impaired driver
  • Be a responsible host
  • Call 911 to report a suspected impaired driver

Blood alcohol concentration

Your blood alcohol concentration, or BAC, is the amount of alcohol in your blood. For example, if your BAC is .05%, that means you have 50 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millitres of blood. Each drink you have within a certain timeframe increases your BAC.

A number of factors affect how quickly your BAC rises and drops. Body type, weight and food intake at the time of drinking can all impact your BAC.

For the vast majority of people, drinking socially – having a glass of wine or two with dinner or a beer or two after work – will not put them above the .05% level. It is important to realize, though, that even small amounts of alcohol can impair driving ability.

The safest way, always, is to separate drinking from driving entirely. If you are going to be drinking more than that, don’t risk a licence suspension or worse, a crash — plan alternate transportation home.

Alcohol and the law

  • All motorists in New Brunswick under the age of 21 must maintain a 0% Blood Alcohol Content while driving
  • Drivers 21 and older in New Brunswick who are found to have a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) between 0.05% and 0.08% milligrams are subject to a 7 day suspension of their driver’s licence
  • With a blood alcohol concentration exceeding 0.08%, a driver will be served with a 90 day administrative licence suspension
  • For more information view New Brunswick's Driver's Handbook - Safe Driving

Government of Canada, Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction,  The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, New Brunswick Driver's Handbook, MADD Canada - Mother's Against Drunk Driving