In brief
Alcohol affects many parts of the body. Australian guidelines advise healthy adults to have no more than 10 standard drinks a week and no more than 4 on any one day.
- healthdirect suggests stopping alcohol at least 4 hours before bed.
- For blood pressure, healthdirect suggests no more than 2 standard drinks a day for males and 1 for females.
- Drinking a lot of alcohol, especially beer and spirits, raises the risk of gout.
How it works
One standard drink contains about 10 grams of alcohol. Alcohol is filtered through the liver, and drinking too much is a common cause of fatty liver and of cirrhosis. Drinking more than recommended also raises the risk of high blood pressure.
Alcohol can disrupt your sleep cycles, leading to poorer quality sleep, and drug and alcohol use can be both a cause and a consequence of depression. The guidelines advise not drinking if you are pregnant, planning a pregnancy or breastfeeding.
Connections
15 connections on the map. Select a topic to read its page.
Alcohol can raise
Drinking more alcohol than recommended raises the risk of high blood pressure. healthdirect suggests no more than 2 standard drinks a day for males and 1 for females.
Source: healthdirect Australia, High blood pressure (hypertension)
Drinking a lot of alcohol, especially beer and spirits, raises the risk of gout.
Source: healthdirect Australia, Gout
Drinking too much alcohol is a risk factor for atrial fibrillation, and healthdirect suggests no more than 3 drinks a week for people with it.
- Heart failure Supported
Alcohol abuse can damage the heart muscle (cardiomyopathy), one of the causes of heart failure.
- Dementia Supported
Excessive alcohol consumption is a risk factor for dementia and cognitive decline.
Source: Better Health Channel (Victorian Government), Dementia: reducing your risk
Drinking alcohol raises the risk of bowel cancer, and the less you drink, the lower your risk.
Source: Better Health Channel (Victorian Government), Bowel cancer
Alcohol can worsen
Alcohol can disrupt your sleep cycles, leading to poorer quality sleep.
Source: healthdirect Australia, Sleep
Drinking alcohol is a risk factor for sleep apnoea, and avoiding alcohol is part of treatment.
Alcohol is one of the food and drink triggers for heartburn.
Alcohol can cause
Drinking too much alcohol is a common cause of fatty liver.
Excessive alcohol use is a common cause of fatigue.
Source: healthdirect Australia, Fatigue
Alcohol affects
Alcohol is filtered through the liver, and excessive alcohol intake is a common cause of cirrhosis.
Alcohol can lower
Alcohol interferes with how the body absorbs folate.
Source: NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, Folate: fact sheet for health professionals
Alcohol is linked with
- Low mood and low motivation Supported
Drug and alcohol use can be both a cause and a consequence of depression.
Lab tests
Sources
- Tips for safe drinking
- Fatty liver disease
- Liver
- Sleep
- High blood pressure (hypertension)
- Depression
- Gout
Each connection above names its own source. See every source AskBioMap uses.
Summarised from healthdirect and the Better Health Channel. Sources read on 13 and 16 October 2026. General education only, not medical advice. Spotted a mistake? Please tell us through the HuBu-Intel contact page.