A new study finds that overall alcohol consumption in the United States declined for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic, even as drinking among adults ages 50 to 64 rose sharply, including a marked increase in heavy drinking within that age group.
The research, led by the University of Southern California/Keck Medicine and published Sept. 21 in Annals of Internal Medicine, drew on self-reported data from the National Health Interview Survey covering 114,352 U.S. adults between 2018 and 2024.
Across all age groups, alcohol use fell by nearly 2% and heavy drinking fell by more than 8% between 2022 and 2024. Despite that decline, overall alcohol use remains above pre-pandemic levels.
The exception is adults ages 50 to 64, a group that includes much of Generation X. Among that cohort, alcohol use increased by nearly 4% from 2018 to 2024, while heavy drinking rose by more than 36% over the same period.
Younger adults moved in the opposite direction. Alcohol use among Gen Z adults declined by more than 5%, and millennials reported drinking approximately 17% less from 2022 to 2024.
The findings suggest a generational divergence in drinking habits even as the national trend points downward overall, with researchers noting the increase in heavy drinking among the 50-to-64 age group as a notable contrast to declines seen elsewhere.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login