Young people who binge drink are likely to continue into adulthood
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Binge drinking is widespread among British men and women throughout their 20s, 30s, and into their 40s, new research shows (Addiction 2005;100:543-9). And those who binge drink in their early 20s are more likely to be binge drinking 26 years later: the risk is twofold for men and 1.5-fold for women.
Men who drank more than seven units a week at the age of 16 were one and a half times more likely than light drinkers to binge drink in their 30s or 40s. Women who rarely or never drank at this age were less likely than light drinkers to binge drink later on.
Barbara Jefferis and colleagues at the Institute of Child Health, University College London, looked at binge drinking trends in the United Kingdom, using data from four surveys. The surveys tracked a national sample of 8520 men and women at the ages of 16, 23, 33, and 42.
Binge drinkers were defined as men who consumed 10 or more units of alcohol on each occasion and women who consumed seven or more units. One unit is 8 g or 10 ml of pure alcohol, equivalent to a small glass of wine or half a pint of beer.
The prevalence of binge drinking in adulthood was high, especially in the early 20s, when 37% of men and 18% of women were binge drinkers. By age 33, levels of binge drinking had dropped, but still remained high, with 28% of men and 13% of women binge drinking. By age 42, 31% of men and 14% of women were binge drinking. Eight per cent of men and 1% of women were binge drinkers in all three adult surveys, spanning 20 years.
"What is clear is that binge drinking is common in British men and women throughout their 20s and 40s," said the researchers, adding that drinking during adolescence has a modest but important association with binge drinking in later adulthood.
The finding of temporal trends is important because of the health and social effects of continued drinking, the researchers say: "One stark reflection of the increased physical harm due to heavier alcohol use in early adulthood is the increase in deaths from liver disease in the UK, which is appearing at ever earlier ages." Since 1970, there has been an almost eightfold increase in deaths among 35-44 year olds. Government policy targeted at youthful binge drinking may need to be widened to take account of older drinkers at risk.(Abergavenny Roger Dobson)
Men who drank more than seven units a week at the age of 16 were one and a half times more likely than light drinkers to binge drink in their 30s or 40s. Women who rarely or never drank at this age were less likely than light drinkers to binge drink later on.
Barbara Jefferis and colleagues at the Institute of Child Health, University College London, looked at binge drinking trends in the United Kingdom, using data from four surveys. The surveys tracked a national sample of 8520 men and women at the ages of 16, 23, 33, and 42.
Binge drinkers were defined as men who consumed 10 or more units of alcohol on each occasion and women who consumed seven or more units. One unit is 8 g or 10 ml of pure alcohol, equivalent to a small glass of wine or half a pint of beer.
The prevalence of binge drinking in adulthood was high, especially in the early 20s, when 37% of men and 18% of women were binge drinkers. By age 33, levels of binge drinking had dropped, but still remained high, with 28% of men and 13% of women binge drinking. By age 42, 31% of men and 14% of women were binge drinking. Eight per cent of men and 1% of women were binge drinkers in all three adult surveys, spanning 20 years.
"What is clear is that binge drinking is common in British men and women throughout their 20s and 40s," said the researchers, adding that drinking during adolescence has a modest but important association with binge drinking in later adulthood.
The finding of temporal trends is important because of the health and social effects of continued drinking, the researchers say: "One stark reflection of the increased physical harm due to heavier alcohol use in early adulthood is the increase in deaths from liver disease in the UK, which is appearing at ever earlier ages." Since 1970, there has been an almost eightfold increase in deaths among 35-44 year olds. Government policy targeted at youthful binge drinking may need to be widened to take account of older drinkers at risk.(Abergavenny Roger Dobson)