Survey: Frequency Of Drinking In Mothers Is Increasing

Motherhood is not an easy task. Taking care of kids and home along with a job can be very stressful. A recent poll conducted by a website has shown that frequency of drinking in mothers is increasing. Mothers are taking help of alcohol to cope up with stress. This survey, conducted by website Netmums included 3,000 mothers. This survey showed that 49% mothers drink three or four nights a week at home.

81% surveyed women said that they drink to relax after the stressful day. 86% women accepted that they were drinking too much.

Another poll conducted by the Government's Know Your Limits campaign showed similar results. The survey showed that 42% of men and women drink alcohol to relieve stress. Number of men drinking due to stress was slightly larger than the number of women drinking due to stress. 45% of men drank due to stress as compared to 40% of women.

These surveys also showed that parenthood could be stressful because more than half (51%) of people aged 25 to 44 belonging to parenting age accepted that they drank under stress as compared with 30% of those over 55. These survey also showed that a wine bottle is becoming favorite way of parents to de-stress themselves after a long day. But this habit is increasing health risk for parents because daily consumption of wine can cross the recommended intake of alcohol by government. A bottle of wine (ABV 13.5%) has 10 units. According to government recommendation, men should not take more that 21 units in a week. Similarly daily recommended intake for women is only two to three units in a day. Daily wine consumption crosses these recommendations.

Siobhan Freegard of Netmums said that the extent to which our research showed modern mums are drinking really surprised us. It shows many mums and dads are developing a 'bottle a night' habit without really thinking about the health consequences. Getting used to juggling work and home life again after the summer break can be stressful for parents, but it's important not to allow yourself to slip back into the routine of relying on alcohol to help you unwind.

GP Dr Sarah Jarvis advised to use exercise or a nice warm bath to unwind the stressful day. Moreover regularly exceeding the guideline alcohol limits can increase your risk of several forms of cancer, heart disease and stroke.

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