28th October, 2024
Tips for reducing risky drinking at your club this silly season
With the end of year fast approaching again – many of us will have some big events planned with finals and end of year celebrations.
If you’re planning or running events, there are some great ways you can make sure the event is fun and welcoming for all ages, and avoid members and guests drinking in a risky way.
And, if you or other people at your club do want to drink alcohol but want to avoid drinking too much, there are plenty of ways to manage this.
The Australian drinking guidelines recommend having no more than 4 standards drinks in one day, and no more than 10 standard drinks in a week to reduce the chance of accidents, injuries and disease.
We’ve also put together some suggestions below.
Organising an event or party
If you are organising a party, BBQ or special event, here are some tips to make sure everyone has an enjoyable time without feeling like they have to drink too much.
- Consider the time of your event and the venue. Schedule your event for during the day, rather than the evening. Consider organising your party at a venue other than a bar - like a community centre or a park, if it’s not held at your own club.
- Provide food. Ensure your event provides food, preferably substantial hot food rather than salty or sugar-laden snacks. This will help people who are drinking from getting drunk too quickly.
- Provide a selection of non-alcoholic drinks. This could include water and soft drinks, but you could also provide non-alcoholic beer, wines and other spirits as an option.
- Provide entertainment. Plan activities such as karaoke, sports, lawn bowls, trivia, dancing or games. This will make sure people have something to focus on other than drinking.
- Impose a limit on the bar tab or amount of alcohol purchased if you’re providing alcohol. An unlimited bar or large amount of drinks encourages people to drink more than they might otherwise.
How to avoid a hangover
Here are some helpful tips for enjoying your event, and also avoiding that next day hangover:
- Don’t have pre-drinks before you go out. Studies have shown that having drinks before an event increases the amount you drink and can up your risk of hospital admissions or other accidents or injuries.
- Set a drinking limit before the event and stick to it. Don’t feel pressured to drink heavily just because someone else is covering the tab, offering you a drink or ordering a round of shots.
- Eat before and during the event. Don’t drink on an empty stomach. Alcohol takes longer to be absorbed by your body when there’s food in your stomach.
- Pace your alcoholic drinks. Drink water or non-alcoholic drinks like soft-drink, soda water or juice between beer, wine or spirits.
- Don’t drink and drive. Alcohol impacts your ability to drive safely. The legal limit for alcohol consumption while operating a motor vehicle in Australia is 0.05 blood alcohol content (BAC). But, it can be difficult to measure how much you’re affected. Alcohol impacts everyone differently depending on their weight, height, drinking habits and amount drunk. The safest option is to organise another way home, like catching public transport, ordering an Uber or taxi, crashing overnight at a local friend’s place or assigning someone to be a designated driver.
- Avoid taking other drugs. Mixing alcohol and illicit drugs can increase your risk of harmful side effects and make you feel worse the next day. If you’re taking prescription medications, check with your doctor if you’re able to drink alcohol while taking them.
For references and more info, check out the Alcohol and Drug Foundation website.