Q: What is a standard drink?
A: To put it simply, standard drinks are a way to measure how much alcohol you consume. In Australia, one standard drink is 10g of alcohol. Alcoholic drinks are served in numerous different sizes and varieties and they all contain different amounts of alcohol. Counting your drinks by standard drinks rather is a more accurate way to monitor your consumption.
One standard drink in Australia is equal to approximately:- 285 mL of full strength beer (VB, XXXX, Carlton Dry) (4.8% alc. vol)
- 375mL of mid strength beer (3.5% alc.vol)
- 425 mL of low strength beer (2.7% alc. vol)
- 100 mL of wine (red – 13% alc. vol, and white – 11.5% alc. vol)
- 100 mL of champagne (12% alc. vol) 3
- 30 mL of spirits (vodka, rum, whiskey) (40% alc. vol)
- 275 mL bottle of ready-to-drink beverage (5% alcohol content)
Consumption
The National Health and Medical Research Council guidelines recommends the following:Guideline 1: For healthy men and women, drinking no more than two standard drinks on any day reduces the lifetime risk of harm from alcohol-related disease or injury.
What is BAC?
Blood Alcohol Concentration otherwise known as BAC is the amount of alcohol present in your bloodstream. BAC measures the amount of alcohol in your system per 100 millilitres of blood, for example, a BAC of 0.075 means you have 0.075 g (75 milligrams) in your bloodstream. Your BAC reading is what measured to see if you are fit to drive, it is dependant on your size, how much alcohol you’ve consumed, in what time period and your metabolism. You can use this calculator as a guide.Driving
In NSW there are three blood alcohol concentration limits: zero, under 0.02 and under 0.05. You must have a BAC of 0 if you are:- A learner driver
- Driving on a provisional 1 or 2 license
- A visiting driver from overseas
- Driving a vehicle that has a greater mass than 13.9 tonnes
- Carrying dangerous goods
- Driving public vehicles such as taxis and buses
- Have all other licenses
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