Alcohol
If you don't drink, don't start. If you choose to drink, lower your risk .
Drinking alcohol can affect your
health and wellbeing.
Alcohol is a drug that is used often in social settings. Like other drugs, alcohol can change the way
we think, feel and act. The more you
drink on average per week, or on a single occasion, the greater your risk.
Alcohol use has been linked to over 200 chronic diseases
such as:
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various cancers
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heart disease
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chronic pancreatitis
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hypertension
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liver damage
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fetal alcohol spectrum disorder
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mental health issues, etc.
More
information: World Health
Organization
As little as 1 drink a day can increase your risk for cancer.Alcohol is known to cause cancer. Risk of cancer increases with the amount of
alcohol consumed; even the smallest amounts increase risk for some cancers.
Consuming alcohol and tobacco together increases risk of
developing cancer by up to 300 times compared to drinkers who do not smoke and
smokers who do not drink.
When it comes to cancer risk, there is no safe level of
alcohol consumption.
More information: Canadian
Cancer Society
Alcohol is linked to injuries, early
death and social problems.
Alcohol use has
been linked serious injuries and early death due to:
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motor vehicle collisions
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alcohol poisoning
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falls
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drowning
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homicides
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suicides
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fires
Heavy alcohol use is related to a number
of social problems including:
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violent crime
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unintended pregnancies
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the spread of sexually transmitted infections
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sexual assault
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child neglect/abuse
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intimate partner abuse
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unemployment
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failed
relationships
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homelessness
Harms from alcohol outweigh benefits.
Alcohol may
provide some health benefits for your heart but this continues to be debated.
If benefits do exist, they are mainly seen in people over 45 years of age. In
most cases, one drink of alcohol every other day is enough to achieve these
benefits. Amounts greater than this pose more risks and cancel out all the
benefits. If your goal is to improve your health, instead of drinking alcohol
you are better off to follow a healthy diet, get more exercise, and be a
non-smoker.
If
you choose to drink:1. Know what a standard drink is and measure before you
pour so you know how many drinks you have had.
2.
Follow Canada’s Low-Risk Alcohol Drinking Guidelines.
(Embed Video “Canada’s Low Risk Drinking Guidelines” www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbpdMFE-AIE)
Remember that these guidelines lower
your risks but drinking alcohol in any amount carries some risk.
3.
Keep track of how much you drink – per day and per week.
4.
Drink slowly. For every drink of alcohol, have one
non-alcoholic drink.
Do not drink
when you are:
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Pregnant or planning to be pregnant
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Driving a vehicle or using machinery and tools
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Taking medication or other drugs that interact
with alcohol
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Doing any kind of dangerous physical activity
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Living with mental or physical health problems
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Living with alcohol dependence
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Responsible for the safety of others
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Making important decisions
Hosting a party or
event?
If you are hosting a party where alcohol will be served, you are responsible for your guests’ safety until they are sober.
To help reduce your risk:
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Do not mix physical activity with alcohol. People
are more likely to injure themselves while drinking.
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Provide alcohol-free and low-alcohol drink
options for your guests. Try some of these delicious mocktail recipes.
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Provide snacks for your guests – the healthier the better and avoid salty and sweet options.
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Be ready to host overnight guests.
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Make yourself or a friend the ‘bartender’ for the night rather than having an open bar. You will be able to better monitor how much alcohol your guests are drinking.
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Pre-plan what you will do to look after guests
who drink too much.
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Do not let your
guests drink and drive. Have designated drivers, spare cash and taxi company
phone numbers available. Take keys away from anyone who you feel will drink and
drive.
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Limit your
alcohol intake so that you can monitor the party and make decisions with a
clear mind.
More information: CAMH – Having a Party?
Deflate the
Elephant
Best Start Mocktails
for Mom
Smart Serve Responsible Alcohol Beverage Service
Training Program is approved by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario
(AGCO) as a server training program for the Ontario hospitality industry. By law, all managers and servers must be
Smart Serve certified. You can take the
online course here, or contact
Northern College (705-567-9291 ext. 3264) or training@northern.on.ca) for their next in class date.
Fuelled by alcohol, some customers in bars resort to threats, fights, mischief, vandalism, property damage and driving. Safer Bars includes a 3-hour training for bar staff to manage aggressive customers, keeping everyone safer. Learn more here.
Local alcohol policies can promote a culture of
moderation, support community values, raise awareness of harms, influence
social norms and promote a healthier community.
A Municipal Alcohol Policy (MAP) aligns with liquor laws and outlines
the appropriate use of alcohol on municipally owned and managed places and
spaces. For resources on how to develop
your MAP, check out the CAMH
guide or Public Health Ontario’s Steps
for developing a MAP
Other Drugs
If you use drugs, reduce
the harms .
Using any drug can affect your health
and wellbeing.
Cannabis
Harms
related to cannabis depend upon the amount that is used, how often it is used
and the method.
These can include:
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Risk of addiction
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Decreased motivation
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Impaired memory
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Decreased attention span
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Difficulty processing complex information
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Motor vehicle crashes
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Increased risk for chronic bronchitis and emphysema
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Increased risk of heart disease and stroke
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Possible increased risk of mental illness (e.g.,
anxiety, psychosis, and/or schizophrenia), etc.
The medicinal benefits of cannabis
continue to be debated and more research is needed in this area. Cannabis has been prescribed to:
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Treat
nausea
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Increase
appetite
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Decrease
associated symptoms of glaucoma
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Reduce
chronic pain
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Reduce
inflammation
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Treat
epileptic seizures
More information:
Centre
for Addictions and Mental Health
Driving High is Driving Impaired.
After
alcohol, cannabis is the most common drug found in dead and injured drivers.
Driving
while under the influence of cannabis is illegal. Cannabis affects how well you understand
distance, pay attention, concentrate and react. If you are suspected of driving
while impaired by cannabis, you can be charged in the same way you would with
alcohol.
Test your knowledge with the Cannabis
Quiz
Opioids can be dangerous if not used as prescribed.
Opioids are
classed as a depressant. This means that they slow down the part of the brain
that controls breathing and heart rate. Opioids are mainly used for their
sedative effects and to manage pain.
Other medical uses include control of coughs and diarrhea, and the
treatment of addiction to other opioids.
All opioids are dangerous when taken
in large amounts or when taken with other depressants, such as alcohol or
benzodiazepines.
Opioids can produce a mellow relaxed “high,” making them prone to abuse and addiction.
Some people inject opioids to increase the intensity of the “high”.
Using dirty needles and sharing needles carries a high risk
of infection and disease (e.g., HIV, hepatitis). When tablets or capsules are dissolved for
injection, non-drug substances contained in these products can permanently
damage veins and organs.
More
information: Centre
for Addictions and Mental Health
Fentanyl is a very powerful opioid that is
very cheap to produce. It is
increasingly being used in other drugs such as heroin and cocaine to increase
the potency of these drugs and has been pressed into tablet form to imitate
oxycontin. The user has no way to tell
whether fentanyl has been added, how much, or what their reaction might be.
Prevent Accidental Poisoning
Prescription
and over-the-counter medications are the third most commonly abused and misused
substances behind only alcohol and marijuana.
In 2015, approximately 12% of teens abused prescription drugs with the
majority of these teens obtaining the drugs from home.
When taken
improperly or abused, prescription medications are no safer than illegal
drugs. In fact, many dangerous and unpredictable
effects are associated with abusing prescription drugs including addiction,
overdose and death.
In order to
minimize the misuse and abuse of medication, it is recommended that
prescription and over-the counter medications be taken according to the
directions provided by a health care provider and only for the reasons the
medications were intended.
Some
commonly misused medications include opioids, benzodiazepines, and amphetamines
but there are others. More information: Prescription
and Over the Counter Drug Guide
When
the wrong amount of medication is taken, or taken by someone it is not intended
for, poisoning can result. Even a small
amount of adult medication taken by a child can be fatal. Prescription and over-the-counter medications
are involved in two-thirds of unintentional poisonings in children under 18
years of age.
To prevent accidental poisoning, all medications
should be kept in a safe, secure location out of the reach of children. Any unused or outdated medication should be
discarded by returning them to a pharmacist for proper disposal. For information on the Medications Return
Program, please visit www.healthsteward.ca/sites/default/files/OMRPbrochure.pdf
To learn more about
drugs, please visit www.healthycanadians.gc.ca/healthy-living-vie-saine/substance-abuse-toxicomanie/controlled-drugs-substances-controlees/index-eng.php
