Information in this section pertains to all global PEN® partners except where country flags are
visible. Click on the flag(s) for country-specific information. If a country flag is not listed, there is
no information specific to that country.
Australia
- For healthy men and women:
- Drinking no more than two standard drinks on any day reduces the risk of harm from alcohol-related disease or injury over a lifetime.
- Drinking no more than four standard drinks on a single occasion reduces the risk of alcohol-related injury arising from that occasion.
- One drink contains 10 grams of pure alcohol.
- For children and young people under 18 years of age, not drinking alcohol is the safest option.
- Parents and carers should be advised that children under 15 years of age are at the greatest risk of harm from drinking and that for this age group, not drinking alcohol is especially important.
- For young people aged 15 to 17 years, the safest option is to delay the initiation of drinking for as long as possible.
- Maternal alcohol consumption can harm the developing fetus or breastfeeding baby.
- For women who are pregnant or planning a pregnancy, not drinking is the safest option.
- For women who are breastfeeding, not drinking is the safest option.
Canada
- Ten drinks a week for women, with no more than two drinks a day most days.
- Fifteen drinks a week for men, with no more than three drinks a day most days.
- One drink is 13.6 grams of alcohol.
- Non-drinking days should be planned every week to avoid developing a habit.
- If pregnant or planning to become pregnant, or about to breastfeed, the safest choice is to drink no alcohol at all.
Japan
- reduce the number of heavy drinkers
- prohibit minors from drinking
- disseminate information on appropriate alcohol intake.
Ireland
- Up to 11 standard drinks in a week for women.
- Up to 17 standard drinks in a week for men.
- A standard drink is 10 grams of pure alcohol
Alcohol and Pregnancy
The Department of Health’s Chief Medical Officer has stated that alcohol consumption by pregnant women in Ireland poses a risk to unborn babies. “Given the harmful drinking patterns in Ireland and the propensity to binge drink, there is a substantial risk of neurological damage to the fetus resulting in Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD)…it is in the child’s best interest for a pregnant woman not to drink alcohol during pregnancy.”
New Zealand
- Women: no more than two standard drinks daily and no more than 10 a week. At least two alcohol-free days per week.
- Men: no more than three standard drinks daily and no more than 15 a week. At least two alcohol-free days per week.
- A standard drink is 10 grams of pure alcohol.
United Kingdom
Current recommendations:
- Adults should not regularly drink more than:
- 14 units a week (a unit is 8 grams of pure alcohol)
- Regularly means drinking every day or most days of the week.
- For information about children and alcohol, see: Should my child drink alcohol?
Alcohol and Pregnancy
Pregnant women and women trying for a baby should avoid drinking alcohol. If they choose to drink, it should not be more than 1-2 units of alcohol once or twice a week and women should not get drunk while pregnant. The
National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) advises pregnant women to avoid alcohol during the first three months of pregnancy in particular, because of the increased risk of miscarriage. See:
Drinking Alcohol While Pregnant
United States
Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Agriculture
- Up to one drink per day for women and two drinks per day for men.
- A standard drink is 14 grams of pure alcohol.