Answer to stress does not lie at the bottom of a beer glass

When men are engaged in any stressful activity, whether it happens to be sport or business and they need to relax, it would appear that the default position of the British male is to go out drinking.

For men who are away from home en masse, the way they try to relieve stress is by going out drinking together. It appears to me that this is the way that men choose to bond with other men. I am not saying that this is adaptive behaviour, but it is normal behaviour in groups of males – particularly in the UK. It seems to me that this culture is more common to British males, because the pub or bar is the centre of social activity.

Women have much healthier ways of dealing with stress because their emotional intelligence is far more acute. When faced with stressful situations, women are far more likely to speak to their friends and sort out their issues without having to resort to alcohol.

Men, on the other hand, seem to need alcohol to unburden themselves. It is almost as if they need the excuse of alcohol to talk about the challenges they face. With sportsmen playing team sports it is almost as if this is the route that they choose in order to express their feelings.

People say that drinking helps team spirit and you do not get this amongst professional sportsmen in the US or amongst athletes or tennis players.

But my view is that if they wanted to bond, they would be better going out for a meal – perhaps with a glass of wine. But having six or seven drinks – binge drinking – is not that helpful. Not only is it bad for your health, but it can impair sporting performance.

l Professor Cary Cooper, an expert in stress at Lancaster University.