There’s a type of drinking worse than bingeing alcohol, researchers believe

Warning: This article contains discussion of alcoholism which some readers may find distressing.

As we roll into the festive period, there’s no denying that social drinking and booze-filled events ramp up.

But for those with alcohol problems, it can be a pretty tough time of year with some seeing their habits get worse. I’ll be honest, it almost feels like excessively drinking is encouraged over Christmas – just like excessively eating.

However, going heavy on the booze really isn’t limited to the holidays and is a regular happening for many people.

Binge drinking can be extremely dangerous and takes place when people have an awful lot of alcohol in a short space of time, with experts warning against it.

And researchers believe that there’s a type of drinking that’s even worse than bingeing alcohol.

High-intensity drinking is a step up from bingeing. (Getty Stock Photos)

It’s called high-intensity drinking and is described as ‘common among certain types of binge drinkers and is often associated with special occasions, including holidays, sporting events, and, notably, 21st birthdays’.

Published in the National Library of Medicine, the High-Intensity Drinking report defines it as being ‘at least twice the typical binge drinking threshold’, so, plus 10 drinks. Or, at twice the gender-specific binge threshold – above eight for women, above 10 for men.

Experts have previously referred to these heavier levels of binge drinking as ‘extreme drinking’ but now researchers have settled on ‘high-intensity drinking’.

And it comes with heavier consequences than the already unhealthy bingeing.

It's often associated with special occasions. (Getty Stock)

Having eight or 10 drinks in a short period of time can produce a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of over 0.2 per cent, and director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, George Koob, said this ‘significantly increases the risk of injuries, overdose and deaths’.

To compare that, a regular binge (about four or five drinks) tends to result in a BAC of around 0.08 percent.

Addiction expert and psychologist Keith Humphreys also told The New York Times that high-intensity drinkers are more likely to experience a ‘full blackout’ with no memory of what happened. Or, they tend to end up in hospital ‘grossly intoxicated and a danger to themselves and others’.

When people dip into the high-intensity pattern, Humphreys says the ‘risk of harm goes up pretty dramatically’.

Koob also says that a higher number of drinks per an occasion is associated with a greater likelihood of developing alcohol use disorder.

Experts echo that high-intensity drinking ‘doesn’t just harm the drinker’ but can lead to physical assaults, driving incidents, damage and even relationship problems.

Please drink responsibly. If you want to discuss any issues relating to alcohol in confidence, contact Drinkline on 0300 123 1110, 9am–8pm weekdays and 11am–4pm weekends for advice and support.