Professor Ian Gilmore, president of the Royal College of Physicians in London told Britain's Telegraph.co.uk that the pressure of being a mother or having a career was leading women to drink more and consequently they are "storing up a health time bomb".

"Women in their role as mother or carer use alcohol to cope with exhaustion, anxiety, isolation and with stressful life events," Professor Gilmore said.

He believes the link between alcohol consumption, the emancipation of women and their bigger role in the workplace has led to women feeling under more pressure, and having a drink to calm themselves.

"Women feel pressure to compete with their male counterparts, especially in those industries which are dominated by men and are highly paid, such as financial institutions in the city."

Professor Gilmore continued, "Alcohol is a sedative and a relaxant but, used on a regular basis, can really put people at high risk. Women are storing up a health time bomb by drinking this regularly."

The 2009 Australian Guidelines to Reduce Health Risks from Drinking Alcohol advises, "There is no level of drinking alcohol that can be guaranteed to be completely 'safe' or 'no risk'."

The guidelines recommend that healthy men and women drink no more than two standard drinks on any day to reduce the lifetime risk of harm from alcohol-related disease or injury.

Your say: do you have a drink at the end of the day? How regularly do you drink? Do you think women drink at a dangerous level? Do these findings worry you? Share your opinions below.