1. Don’t drink on an empty stomach. Savor your meal before you start drinking an alcoholic beverage.
2. Do not overeat and Sip your drink. Enjoy your beverage.
3. Avoid binging. The definition of binging is 5 drinks or more in less than 4-5 hours.
4. Keep your consumption of drinks as low as possible – not more than 3 drinks for a man and 2 for a woman.
5. Alcoholic beverages are similar in alcohol content. One beer is equivalent to a glass of wine or a shot of liquor.
6. Find a driver. Don’t drive after drinking. It is hard to judge your blood alcohol level and its effects on your cognitive ability and reflexes.
7. If you are a diabetic or hypertensive, suffering from a heart or liver condition, take your daily medications, and check with your doctor to avoid alcohol interactions with your medications.
8. If you are going to use Tylenol, don’t exceed more than 3 grams in one day. Be aware that a lot of headache medicines or pain killers contain acetaminophen (Tylenol), so avoid accidental overdosing.
9. Don’t mix alcohol with other recreational drugs.
10. Space your beverages to allow your body the ability to metabolize what you ingested and avoid intoxication.
Savor, Sip and Space
Curated by Dr. Tarek Hassanein of Southern California Liver Centers
