If warnings about the physical dangers of drinking aren’t getting through to your friends and loved ones, a new app that appeals to their vanity may have more impact. Drinking Mirror is an app available for smart phones or tablets that allows users to upload a photo and see a simulation of the effects ongoing drinking could have on their looks. It also shows users how cutting back can improve their appearance as they age.
This app is part of the Scottish government's “Drop a Glass Size” campaign, specifically created to encourage women to think about the health effects of regularly drinking above the recommended guidelines. Those guidelines state that more than two to three drinks for women and three to four drinks for men per day is excessive and could cause harm over time. About 38 percent of Scottish women and 49 percent of men exceed the daily recommended limit each week according to government statistics.
The campaign aims to make people aware of the fine line between social drinking and drinking too much, especially when people drink at home where it may be easier to lose track of your exact intake. While the campaign may seem to target women, the website also includes a page devoted to "drinking like a man," where males are warned that if they regularly have more than five drinks a day, they are twice as likely to die of a stroke. It also lets men know that a beer belly can increase their risk of cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, sleep apnea and cancer.
While the stats show that men drink more than women on average, women seem to suffer more negative effects from drinking. This is a fact that the Scottish government hopes to drive home. By engaging women – and all drinkers – in a more lighthearted way, they hope the message will be heard and finally sink in.
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