Drinking finally slows after pandemic spike, but not for every age group
Context:
A nationwide study finds Americans are drinking a bit less for the first time since the pandemic, though overall alcohol use remains above pre-2020 levels. Declines occurred mainly among Gen Z and millennial groups, while adults aged 50–64 saw rising heavy drinking, signaling uneven recovery. The research, based on four-year NHIS data, notes a modest overall drop and gender differences, with heavier use still a concern for middle-aged adults. The findings imply ongoing health risks from sustained high consumption, especially for midlife adults, and suggest attention to age-specific trends as post-pandemic patterns stabilize. Momentum may stall for older cohorts even as younger groups reduce intake slightly.
Dive Deeper:
The study analyzes data from four years (2018, 2020, 2022, 2024) using the National Health Interview Survey conducted by the CDC to track drinking patterns across age groups.
Overall drinking declined about 1% from 2022 to 2024, driven by Gen Z and millennials, but remained higher than 2018 levels, indicating a partial rebound after the pandemic spike.
Gen Z adults reduced both heavy and occasional drinking by more than 5% from 2022 to 2024, while millennials saw heavy drinking fall 17% in the same period, though both groups remained slightly above 2018 levels.
In contrast, adults aged 50–64 showed an ongoing rise in heavy drinking, with about 2% more reporting heavy use in 2024 than in 2022, a 30% increase since 2018 that equates to roughly a million people.
Gender differences show men had a larger decline (about 2.4%) than women (about 1.1%) from 2022 to 2024, with heavy drinking declines of 7.7% for men and 9% for women.
Experts warn that the middle-aged cohort’s sustained heavy use elevates risks for high blood pressure, stroke, liver disease, and cancer, noting that cirrhosis risk grows with age.
Contextual commentary suggests post-traumatic spikes in alcohol use after events (like 9/11) often recede but may not return to preexisting downward trends, signaling a potential return to prior trajectories without targeted intervention.