To reduce your alcohol consumption, change your glasses!

“What does the bottle matter as long as we are drunk” proclaimed Alfred de Musset. This is not the opinion of scientists today who link the drink to numerous risks of cancer, cardiovascular disease and diabetes. On the other hand, the link between the container and the drink could well have an impact on our health. This is why a team of British researchers wanted to check whether the daily use of smaller wine bottles, or smaller glasses, would have a real effect on our consumption. The answer is yes: changing the size of our glasses reduces our consumption by 6.5% on average. The results were published in the journal Addiction this August 17.

As much fun but less alcohol with smaller glasses

To arrive at this observation, the team tried two approaches with the 260 English households taking part in the experiment: buying 37.5 cl or 75 cl bottles of wine for 2 weeks, then drinking in smaller glasses (290 ml) or larger (350 ml) for also 14 days, before measuring the quantity of wine absorbed (according to the number of bottles emptied). In the end, it seems that the use of smaller bottles does not really have an impact on consumption. On the other hand, the size of the glasses would indeed influence this, since in a “classic” period spent at home, households with small glasses would have consumed on average 253.3 ml less wine in 14 days than with tall glasses.

Do you remain skeptical? Note that the technique is also known to restaurants, which often offer large capacity glasses to invite their customers to consume more.

How many glasses for a reasoned consumption?

Remember, however, that in terms of alcohol and wine, there is no consumption threshold that would be without risk to health. However, reference values ​​given by Public Health and the National Cancer Institute define what they call “acceptable” risks. That is :

• 10 standard drinks of alcohol per week maximum
• Without exceeding 2 glasses per day
• Days without any alcohol consumption in the week

After age 65, these recommendations change

• 1 standard drink maximum per day
• 7 glasses maximum per week
• Days without any alcohol consumption in the week

A concept already seen on the plate

Our consumption would therefore be influenced by the size of the container, and this is not the first time that our perception has played tricks on us: in 2015 already, a study by the University of Cambridge showed that the size of the plate also played a role in the number of calories absorbed. Indeed, a larger plate gave the impression of smaller portions, while they were fuller. The size also invited the consumer to finish his plate, for fear of not spoiling, even if he no longer felt hungry.

Using plates in smaller formats, on the other hand, would reduce calories by 16% on average, and fight against overweight and obesity.

Food or drink, to enjoy the good things without abuse, it is better to review your dishes.