A study of 2,000 adults who consume alcohol revealed 28 per cent have made excuses to avoid drinking.
And 43 per cent admitted to cancelling social plans to avoid the pressure of drinking alcohol altogether.
Of those most likely to persuade others to have an unplanned tipple, friends are worst (33 per cent), followed by their partner (30 per cent).
While others have faced pressure at weddings (24 per cent) and work events (22 per cent).
But for the 28 per cent who have made up excuses to avoid an alcoholic drink, 38 per cent put it down to having an early start the next day, while 32 per cent claim to be on medication.
And three in 10 tell others they’re the designated driver, even if they’re not, with a fifth lying about wanting to take a break from booze.
However, the real reasons people have chosen not to drink alcohol included wanting to wake up feeling refreshed the next day (32 per cent), getting a better night’s sleep (26 per cent), and trying to live a healthier lifestyle (25 per cent).
Dr Martha Newson, a psychologist specialising in human behaviour who has partnered with non-alcoholic wine drink McGuigan Zero, which commissioned the research, said: “If you’ve ever made up an excuse to not drink alcohol, you’re in good company.
“The research found that people tend to rely on excuses that are functional, such as having work the next day or driving, placing responsibility outside of their control.
“Interestingly however, the true reasons that people reported not drinking alcohol were embedded in self-awareness and personal development, such as health, sleep and wellbeing.”
jQuery(document).ready(function($) {
// We only want these styles applied when javascript is enabled
$(‘.gal_content’).css(‘display’, ‘block’);
// Initialize Advanced Galleriffic Gallery
var gallery = $(‘#thumbs_67790_1’).galleriffic({
delay: 0,
numThumbs: 0,
preloadAhead: 0,
enableTopPager: false,
enableBottomPager: false,
imageContainerSel: ‘#slideshow_67790_1’,
controlsContainerSel: ‘#controls_67790_1’,
captionContainerSel: ‘#caption_67790_1’,
loadingContainerSel:
