Is alcohol shortening your life? An online tool built in B.C. will tell you [Video]

Just in time for Dry January and amid growing interest in the “sober curious” movement, researchers at the University of Victoria have unveiled a new tool to gauge the health impacts of alcohol.

The new Know Alcohol calculator was developed by researchers at UVic’s Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research (CISUR).

The tool allows people to calculate personalized estimates of the potential health risks from their own alcohol consumption, along with the possible benefits of drinking less.

The calculator is built on the health science used to generate Canada’s Guidance on Alcohol and Health, and asks individuals to enter their age, sex and an estimate of how much they drink in a week.

“When Canada’s Guidance on Alcohol and Health was released two years ago, it started the first national conversation on alcohol consumption,” said Dr. Tim Naimi, director of CISUR.

“We wanted to take it a step further and make a tool that showed people personalized …