What is a Standard Drink?

One component of the ability to effectively address substance use and abuse is the ability to communicate clearly with a patient about his or her behavior.

In many cases, a patient may not know what constitutes a “drink” of alcohol. For example, a “mixed drink” may contain 3 or 4 standard drinks of alcohol.

It is important to quantify substance use if possible. Similar to asking how many cigarettes a patient smokes, you should ascertain how many drinks a patient has per day and per week. You need to start by having a common definition of what a “drink” is. A handout, provided here with permission of Academic Edge, Inc., may help your patients better understand drink sizes.