LEGAL DRINK DRIVE LIMIT The current legal drink drive limit in the UK is: - 80 milligrams of alcohol in 100millilitres of blood; or
- 35 micrograms of alcohol in 100 mils of breath; or
- 107 milligrams of alcohol in 100 mils of urine
Because everyone absorbs alcohol into the blood stream at different rates, the legal limit cannot be safely converted into units. However, an average man (12-13 stone, or 75-80 Kg) should consume no more than 4 units. An average woman (9-10 stone, or 60-65 Kg) should consume no more than 3 units. For a particularly small person or for drinking on an empty stomach, these units should be reduced. Any amount of alcohol will impair your judgement. If you want to be safe and sure you are not over the limit, do not drink and drive. A UNIT OF ALCOHOL A unit of alcohol is equivalent to 8 gms or 10ml (1cl) of pure alcohol. The following measures all contain one unit of pure alcohol: - Half pint of lager/beer/cider at 3.5-4% A.B.V. (Alcohol By Volume)
- 25ml pub measure of spirit at 40% A.B.V.
- Small glass of wine at 8-9% A.B.V.
A 125ml glass of wine at 11-12% A.B.V. contains about 1.5 units; A 330 ml bottle of beer/lager/cider at 4-5% A.B.V. contains about 1.5 units; A 330 ml bottle of ALCOPOP at 4 and 6% A.B.V. contains 1.3 and 2 units respectively. LENGTH OF TIME ALCOHOL REMAINS IN THE SYSTEM It will take approximately one hour for a healthy liver to remove one unit of alcohol.
You may still be over the limit the following morning if you drank heavily the night before. Hang-over remedies may help you to feel better, but time is the only thing that will remove alcohol from your system. |
