Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Food
Haven't You Had Enough To Drink You Lush, Asks Health Department
By
John Del Signore
Published Nov 25, 2011
Modified Nov 23, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
John Del Signore
Published Nov 25, 2011
Modified Nov 23, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
You're cut off, says the NYC Health Department, which has just released a heavy new advertisement warning New Yorkers about the dangers of excessive drinking. And how much drinking is considered excessive by their medical standards? If you're a man, they say you're overdoing it if you consume more than two drinks a day or 14 in a one-week period. For women, the upper limits for drinking are one a day or seven over the course of a week. In other words, pretty much everyone you know in New York is a depraved booze-hound.
The new ad, seen here, is part of an ongoing "Excessive Drinking Is Dangerous" campaign launched last year with print and subway ads. This beaut is intended to remind everyone about the potentially awful consequences of drinking too much, ranging from falling onto the subway tracks to regrettable online shopping binges at Forever21.com.
The government says that in 2009, alcohol contributed to more than 8,840 hospitalizations in NYC, an increase of 36% since 2000. Furthermore, alcohol kills an estimated 1,500 New Yorkers each year with related-injuries, poisoning, and violence accounting for 46% of all alcohol-attributable deaths in NYC in 2009. Reached for comment over by the Xbox, our stoner friend says, "And yet alcohol is legal and weed isn't!" Anyway, we apologize for being such a downer, especially around Thanksgiving, when some of us might be inclined to exceed our strict two-drink limit, but forewarned is forearmed. Alcohol is bad, don't do alcohol.
Tagged
alcoholism
drinking
health department
nanny state
the cause of and solution to
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE food
North African restaurants are rare in NYC. These 10 are the best.
Egyptian, Moroccan, Algerian and Tunisian food is delicious but underrepresented in the city.
By
Robert Sietsema
Published Oct 10, 2026
10 dishes that demonstrate the delicious diversity of curry in New York City
The global dish is shapeshifting and ubiquitous.
By
Robert Sietsema
Food
10 dishes that demonstrate the delicious diversity of curry in New York City
The global dish is shapeshifting and ubiquitous.
By
Robert Sietsema
Frozen yogurt is back in New York City. So are the super long lines.
By
Sonia Rao
5 NYC banana puddings as good as Magnolia's
By
Hannah Frishberg
Where to eat in Greenpoint, Brooklyn right now, from Polish to Sichuan to Iberian
By
Robert Sietsema
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .