Some 54% Of Americans Say They Drink, New Gallup Poll Shows A Record Low

Short-term adverse effects include generalized impairment of neurocognitive function, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, and symptoms of hangover. Alcohol is addictive and can result in alcohol use disorder, dependence, and withdrawal upon cessation. Many governmental agencies and organizations issue Alcohol consumption recommendations. Generation Z, people born between 1997 and 2012, have always reported drinking less than their older peers. There’s no one clear reason for alcohol’s decline in popularity among Gen Z, but experts have pointed to several possible factors, including the rise of the legal drinking age to 21 and the way social drinking has evolved.

Binge drinking for men involves having five or more drinks on one occasion. Heavy drinking occurs when someone binge drinks on five or more days in the past 30 days. But people who aren’t familiar with the substance can lose control of how much they drink. If you are concerned about your relationship with alcohol, it’s important to make yourself aware of the facts. There are many myths and misconceptions about alcohol use, but the reality is that there is no «safe» amount you can drink.

• So one 12-ounce can of beer, one 5-ounce glass of wine, or one 1.5-ounce shot of liquor are all equally intoxicating.
• The dip coincides with a growing concern among those surveyed that drinking even in moderation is unhealthy.
• John C. Umhau, MD, MPH, CPE is board-certified in addiction medicine and preventative medicine.
• Fewer people also said they believed drinking could be beneficial—25% of people believed that in 2005, down to 19% in 2016 and 6% this year.

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For example, alcohol misuse is linked to peripheral neuropathy, a condition that commonly occurs in people with severe alcohol use disorder (AUD) and can cause numbness in the arms and legs and painful burning in the feet. Alcohol-related damage to nerves may also cause heart arrythmias (irregular heartbeat), postural or orthostatic hypotension (a drop in blood pressure due to a change in body position), diarrhea, and erectile dysfunction. Because acetaldehyde accumulates more quickly in people with the ALDH2 variant, they are at an increased risk of alcohol-related diseases, including cancer and heart disease, even at lower levels of alcohol consumption. Consumed alcohol remains in the blood for a few hours, but can be detected in the urine for days after ingestion. Alcoholism is a destructive disease, and reducing tragic deaths from alcoholism, drunk driving, or alcohol-related cancer is certainly good news.

Public Health

Drinking in «crowded bars and clubs never bothered me in my 20s, but now they make me feel kinda worried about ventilation and infection risk,» the user wrote. «Worth it for like… A cool annual conference, not worth it just to shoot the shit on a random Friday.» The Gallup poll also showed a stark divide in drinking behaviors between women and men. Women’s alcohol use has dropped 11 percentage points since 2023, while men’s dropped five points. Additionally, 44% of women preferred wine, compared to 14% of men; 52% of men preferred beer, compared to 23% of women. Previous research into moderate drinking (one to two drinks a day) found that some alcohol, like red wine, could be good for you.

Binge drinking

Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a chronic brain disorder that makes it difficult to control alcohol use, even when it’s causing problems. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) has information on how alcohol impacts your health. It also has resources to help those looking to change their drinking habits. If you or someone you love is drinking daily for pain relief, you’ll also likely build up a tolerance, needing more to achieve the same pain-relieving effects.

• Alcohol can lead to many health problems, including liver diseases and increased risk of some cancers.
• Sentences that contain all letters of the alphabet are called pangrams.
• Furthermore, 66% of young people said they think drinking in moderation is harmful, compared to about 50% of people ages 35 and up, according to Gallup.
• Most other alcohols are considered poisonous.11 In general, higher alcohols are less toxic.119 Alcoholic beverages are sometimes laced with toxic alcohols.
• Some colleges try to combat alcohol abuse by forbidding alcohol consumption on campus.

Impact

The findings were widely publicized and promoted by the alcohol industry, and they gained traction in the medical community. The cost of excessive alcohol use impacts everyone, whether they drink or not. These effects can also impact the safety and well-being of people around you. A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States. Learn more about the financial impact of alcohol misuse in the United States.

«Eroding companionship can be seen in numerous odd and depressing facts of American life today,» Derek Thompson wrote for The Atlantic in January. And those who are drinking are drinking less—the average drinking respondent had only 2.8 drinks in the last seven days, down from 4.5 a decade ago, and the lowest number in 30 years. If you’re interested in taking a break from drinking alcohol sign up for NPR’s Zero Alcohol newsletter. We’ll give you expert strategies to set you up for success, plus great mocktail recipes. Gail D’Onofrio, a professor of medicine and public health at Yale University, disagrees. She referenced the federal government’s annual National Survey on Drug Use and Health, which showed in 2024 that marijuana use has been increasing among people older than 26 since 2021.

There are things you can do to drink responsibly, and understanding the way it affects drinking alcohol: the facts your body and issues it may cause are one place to start. These well-worn phrases refer to the belief that you can avoid a hangover if you drink different alcoholic beverages in the «right» order. Alcohol can deliver a certain amount of relief by slowing down the brain and nervous system. That’s why as many as 28% of people with chronic pain turn to alcohol to alleviate their pain.

In 2022, 67 percent of adults said they drank alcohol, which Gallup noted as an outlier, followed by 62 percent in 2023, 58 percent in 2024 and 54 percent this year. Acute pancreatitis can turn into chronic pancreatitis, which is a condition of constant inflammation of the pancreas. Chronic pancreatitis is a risk factor for the development of pancreatic cancer and diabetes. The support of friends and family is important in the journey to recovery from alcohol use disorder (AUD).

Once it enters your system, it triggers immediate physiological changes in the brain, heart, and liver, among other organs. Over time, these changes can lead to long-term health complications if you’re drinking too much. D’Onofrio, like McMullin and Dermody, expects alcohol consumption to continue to drop in the U.S. due to the increased public awareness of alcohol’s health risks.

And it is probably true that moderate drinking is bad for your health. Fewer American adults than ever are drinking alcohol, a new Gallup poll showed Wednesday, while more people admit that even moderate alcohol consumption is bad for their health. Genetics or a family history of alcohol misuse increases that risk as well. Childhood trauma, mental health issues, and stress can also lead people to begin drinking or drink more than usual. Just one or two alcoholic drinks can impair your balance, coordination, impulse control, memory, and decision-making. Too much alcohol can also shut down parts of your brain that are essential for keeping you alive.

Health Fast Facts

They can also see if alcohol is interacting with any medications you may be taking. Side effect risks are higher when you first start Ozempic and when you raise your dose. If you take the medication consistently as prescribed, the side effects should get better over time. They include deaths where the primary (or underlying) cause of death listed on the death certificate was one of 58 alcohol-related causes.