If you like a glass of wine when you’re dining out with friends…or a few beers while watching sports with your buddies—no big deal. These are enjoyable aspects of socializing and harmless for most people. And you probably know that moderate alcohol consumption can have certain health benefits. On the other hand, maybe you (or someone you know) have started to worry about your drinking habits. Maybe you haven’t exactly stayed within the “moderate” range lately. Is it a problem? Should you cut back on drinking—or even abstain?

The truth is that you don’t have to literally end every day falling down drunk for a drinking habit to jeopardize your health, your relationships and your job. And even if you don’t have a problem with alcohol per se, it still can affect your health in ways that would surprise you. The experts in Bottom Line’s Guide to Beating a Drinking Habit will help you assess your alcohol consumption—and if there is a problem, they offer dozens of researched and proven ways to beat it. You’ll take our quiz to see if you (or someone you know) are an “almost alcoholic”…find out how many drinks per day (it’s not much!) ages your brain by six years…learn what happens to the brains of social drinkers that makes them more likely to get into fights…see how alcohol interferes with a crazy optical illusion that you need in order to drive safely at night…learn which wine is associated with less risk for breast cancer… what recovering alcoholics and heavy drinkers should eat and the supplements they should take…and much more.

Read below for more about how to enjoy alcohol safely and make sure it doesn’t control your life…


Maybe You Drink More Than You Think…

Is Someone You Know an “Almost Alcoholic”? Take the Quiz

Drink Too Much? Have a Drug Problem? Warning Signs and What to Do

Who Could Develop a Drinking Problem?


Your Brain On Booze…

Heavy Drinking In Middle Age Speeds Memory Loss by Six Years

The Scary Link Between Binge Drinking and Dementia

Surprising Brain Danger from Drinking

How Alcohol Makes It Harder to Read Facial Expressions

Optical Illusion Explains How Alcohol Impairs Vision

Even Just a Little Alcohol Makes Driving Dangerous


The Cancer Link to Drink

Even One Drink a Day Raises Cancer Risk: Should You Give Up Alcohol?

How Red Wine Affects Breast Cancer Risk

Alcohol: The Drink That’s Linked to Deadly Melanoma Skin Cancer

Should Women Drink? It’s Complicated


Surprising Other Effects of Alcohol

The Truth About Drinking Past 45

Drinkers In the Operating Room: How Alcohol Affects Your Risk for Complications After Surgery

Catching a Cold from Alcohol


Supporting Sobriety and Good Health

Alcoholic? AA Works—But It Helps Men and Women Differently

Nutrients That Help Alcoholics Quit

How Former Heavy Drinkers and Smokers Can Protect Their Health Today

Kudzu Root Tames Alcohol Drive