Minister Bennett in favor of new labeling on liquor bottles

The Canadian Center on Substance Use and Addiction has advised that limiting yourself to no more than two standard drinks per week can help avoid alcohol-related health consequences . (File photo)

Canadians deserve to know how much alcohol is in a standard-sized drink no matter where they buy it, according to federal Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Carolyn Bennett, who doesn't ;However, it is not committed to introducing new federal regulations that would require companies to add new labels to their products.

In January, the Canadian Center on Substance Use and Addiction released new advice on how much alcohol it's safe to drink, after more than two years of health-funded research. Canada.

The center advised that limiting yourself to no more than two standard drinks per week can help avoid alcohol-related health consequences. He recommended adding labels to liquor bottles and cans explaining the health risks and information about what a standard drink is.

Asked about the federal government's willingness to legislate to force companies to change the labels on their products to better reflect the recommendations, Minister Bennett acknowledged that it would be helpful to ensure that Canadians understand exactly what what a standard-sized drink actually is, especially when drinking alcohol at home.

According to the scale used by the Canadian Center on Substance Use and Addiction, a standard drink contains 17.05 milliliters of pure alcohol. However, without the proper label, the calculation can quickly become complex.

For example, a 341ml bottle of beer with 5% alcohol would be considered a drink. standard. However, many beers are sold in other sizes and alcohol strengths.

A standard glass of wine on the other hand would be 142ml with 12% alcohol, but again, many wines vary in their alcohol content. Some sell for 11%, 12.5% ​​or 13.5%.

According to Minister Bennett, when someone orders a triple drink in a bar, they know that he will therefore take a drink with three times the standard amount of alcohol.

But when buying in-store, it's harder to know how much standard glass there is in each container, she confessed.

However, following a meeting on Tuesday with the Beer Association of Canada, Ms. Bennett said she hoped the industry could tackle the problem on its own. #x27;labelling, without having to.

I met with the beer association and I think we know we all need to do better in this area, she stressed.

She recalled that companies decided to remove the chemical BPA from plastic water bottles after an outcry over the health effects more than 10 years ago.

New guidelines from the Canadian Center on Substance Use and Addiction indicate that people who drink three to six drinks a week are at increased risk of developing several forms cancer, including breast cancer and colon cancer. At seven or more drinks per week, the risk of stroke or heart disease increases.

These findings represent a drastic change from the latest guidelines, dating from 2011 , which suggested that 15 drinks per week for men and 10 per week for women would be considered low risk.

Ms Bennett is also pleased to see that non-alcoholic and low-alcohol products are becoming more popular, although this applies more to beers and wines than spirits.