Is it safe to drink?

Alcohol is generally safe – provided you drink in moderation. You shouldn’t drink more than 14 units per week – that’s around six pints of lager or glasses of wine – and you should have at least two days a week when you don’t drink at all. You should also try to avoid binge drinking – which means drinking half or more of this weekly recommendation at one time. 

Do you know what 14 units look like?

While it’s safe to drink, there are some things to bear in mind. If you get drunk, you’re more likely to misjudge risky situations or make decisions you might regret. You also have more chance of having an accident, which could be serious or even fatal. The biggest danger of alcohol happens when you drink too much over a long period of time, or if you become addicted to drinking.

Having more alcohol than you should on a regular basis can damage your brain and nerves, heart, liver and pancreas, and increase your risk of getting cancer. It also increases your blood pressure and cholesterol and weakens your immune systems and bones. If you ever worry about drinking or feel that you can’t go without drinking alcohol, it’s important to get in touch with a healthcare professional, as there is plenty of support available. 

Having diabetes doesn’t mean you can’t drink, but, like a lot of things, you might need to put a little more thought into it. Diabetes UK has some good advice on drinking with type 1 diabetes.

When you drink alcohol, your body wants to get rid of it as fast as possible. The main organ that handles this is your liver. When your liver is trying to detoxify your body of alcohol, it stops responding to signals telling it to do other things; including managing glucose. The liver stops breaking down and releasing glucose stores while it’s trying to get rid of the alcohol in your body. This puts you at greater risk of a hypo.

It’s also important to know that emergency injectable glucagon hypo treatment will not work if you have a hypo when you have been drinking alcohol, as glucagon works through signalling via the liver.   

Be wary of taking correction doses when you’ve been drinking. Because of the way alcohol prevents your body from using its energy stores, it can cause a temporary increase in your blood glucose but often results in a hypo a few hours later. The effects of alcohol mean that the correction dose you actually need can be a lot lower than what it would normally be. Take insulin if your blood glucose is particularly high, but err on the side of caution and take less than you would usually need – and don’t take anything unless you’ve tested your blood glucose first. 

What’s in your drink Click here for a guide to the units, carbohydrate and calorie content of selected alcoholic drinks.

Plan ahead.  If you’re expecting to drink alcohol and be more active than usual – walking to or from places, dancing, having sex – it’s important that you think about this before you go out. It might be a better idea to take slightly less meal-time insulin before you go out in order to reduce your chance of a hypo. You also want to make sure you eat before you go out – don’t drink on an empty stomach. 

Think about what you drink. While alcohol can cause a hypo, you still want to be mindful of the carbs in your drinks, as these can still make you run dangerously high. When deciding what to drink, remember that it is best to have diet mixers, avoid alcopops and consider light lagers rather than other types of beer. 

Stay hydrated and remember to eat.  Alcohol can make you need to go to the toilet more often, as your body tries to get rid of alcohol through urine, and this can make you dehydrated. Vomiting because you drank too much or having high blood glucose will make this worse. It’s a good idea to try to drink some non-alcoholic drinks while you’re out, and make sure you drink lots of water before you go to bed. You should also snack while you’re out to keep your blood glucose up and make sure to eat a meal or a large snack once you’re done for the night. This will start to restore the nutrients you lost and help keep your blood glucose stable overnight. 

Check your blood sugar regularly. It’s a good idea to check your blood glucose is normal before you head out, and to carry a monitor with you while you’re out so that you can test if you start to feel strange or unwell. If you keep track of your blood glucose, you might be able to stave off hypos and dangerous highs by switching your drinks. It’s also important to monitor your blood glucose the day after, as alcohol will affect you for up to 24 hours and you’re more likely to have a hypo the day after too. 

For a guide to alcohol consumption and type 1 diabetes click here.

You can find out more information about alcohol and diabetes on our ‘Understanding type 1’ course which you can access by clicking here.