This might make you rethink heading to the bar this weekend

You might want to consider cutting down on how much you drink once you realize how much it could potentially shorten your lifespan.

Drinking is pretty ingrained in many cultures around the world, you drink as a way to celebrate, as a way to deal with hard times or simply to bring an end to boredom.

However, you might not be thinking how this affects your body… beyond the crippling hangovers, that is.

I mean, it is important to note that alcohol technically is poison, despite how fun the effects may be.

But beyond the short term issues too much alcohol consumption can bring, a scientist at the Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research has revealed just how much alcohol can shave off your life.

A scientist has revealed just how much alcohol can shave off your life. (Getty Stock Image)

Speaking to The Daily Mail, Dr. Tim Stockwell said just one alcoholic beverage per day – we are talking a glass of wine, a beer and even a shot – can cut your life by a surprising amount.

He said it can shave off approximately two-and-a-half months.

But for the people who consume more than that, those that drink significantly more alcohol than that, about 35 beverages a week, could slash a staggering two years off their lifespan.

So yeah.. Might be worth cutting down if you are partial to a drink after a hard day in the office.

While Stockwell has previously been in favor of alcohol in moderation, following research over the last five years, as well as his own, he now says no amount is good for you.

Stockwell said: “Alcohol is our favorite recreational drug. We use it for pleasure and relaxation, and the last thing we want to hear is that it causes any harm,”

Dr. Tim Stockwell said just one alcoholic beverage per day can cut your life expectancy by a surprising amount. (Getty Stock Image)

“It’s comforting to think that drinking is good for our health, but unfortunately, it’s based on poor science.”

Recent research has indicated that any alcohol consumption can increase the risk of certain health conditions, such as cancer, heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, liver disease and more according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

While it may appear that more people are giving up alcohol, some data suggests otherwise and it may actually be on the rise.

According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), which has data going back to 1970. In 2021, the most recent year with data, the average American age 21 or older consumed 2.83 gallons of pure alcohol – the equivalent of about 603 ‘standard drinks’ which, per the NIAAA, contains 0.6 ounces of alcohol.