General Statistics on Drinking
- In 2012, 87.6 percent of people ages 18 or older reported that they drank alcohol at some point in their lifetime; 71 percent reported that they drank in the past year; 56.3 percent reported that they drank in the past month.1
- In 2012, 24.6 percent of people ages 18 or older reported that they engaged in binge drinking in the past month; 7.1 percent reported that they engaged in heavy drinking in the past month.2
Alcohol Use Disorder Statistics
- Approximately 17 million adults ages 18 and older had an Alcohol Use Disorder in 2012 (11.2 million men and 5.7 million women).3
- About 1.4 million adults received treatment for an Alcohol Use Disorder at a specialized facility in 2012 (8.4 percent of adults in need). This included 416,000 women (7.3 percent of women in need) and 1.0 million men (8.9 percent of men in need).4
Adult Binge Drinking Statistics
- One in six U.S. adults binge drinks about four times a month, consuming about eight drinks per binge.5
- While binge drinking is more common among young adults aged 18–34 years, binge drinkers aged 65 years and older report binge drinking more often—an average of five to six times a month.5
- Binge drinking is more common among those with household incomes of $75,000 or more than among those with lower incomes.
- More than 10 percent of U.S. children live with a parent with alcohol problems, according to a 2012 study.6
College Drinking Statistics
- 40.1 percent of college students ages 18–22 engaged in binge drinking (5 or more drinks on an occasion) in the past month compared with 35 percent of same-age peers not in college.7
- 1,825 college students between the ages of 18 and 24 die from alcohol-related unintentional injuries, including motor-vehicle crashes.8
- 696,000 students between the ages of 18 and 24 are assaulted by another student who has been drinking.8
- 97,000 students between the ages of 18 and 24 report experiencing alcohol-related sexual assault or date rape.8
- Roughly 20 percent of college students meet the criteria for an AUD.22
References
1 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). 2012 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). Table 2.71B—Alcohol Use in Lifetime, Past Year, and Past Month among Persons Aged 18 or Older, by Geographic Characteristics: Percentages, 2011 and 2012. Available at: http://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/NSDUH-DetTabs2012/NSDUH-DetTabs2012/HTML/NSDUH-DetTabsSect2peTabs43to84-2012.htm#Tab2.71B
2 SAMHSA. 2012 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). Table 2.46B—Alcohol Use, Binge Alcohol Use, and Heavy Alcohol Use in the Past Month among Persons Aged 18 or Older, by Demographic Characteristics: Percentages, 2011 and 2012. Available at: http://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/NSDUH-DetTabs2012/NSDUH-DetTabs2012/HTML/NSDUH-DetTabsSect2peTabs43to84-2012.htm#Tab2.46B
3 SAMHSA. 2012 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). Table 5.8A—Substance Dependence or Abuse in the Past Year among Persons Aged 18 or Older, by Demographic Characteristics: Numbers in Thousands, 2011 and 2012. Available at: http://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/NSDUH-DetTabs2012/NSDUH-DetTabs2012/HTML/NSDUH-DetTabsSect5peTabs1to56-2012.htm#Tab5.8A
4 SAMHSA. 2012 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). Table 5.32A—Received Substance Use Treatment at a Specialty Facility in the Past Year among Persons Aged 18 or Older, by Demographic Characteristics: Numbers in Thousands, 2011 and 2012. Available at: http://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/NSDUH-DetTabs2012/NSDUH-DetTabs2012/HTML/NSDUH-DetTabsSect5peTabs1to56-2012.htm#Tab5.32A
5 CDC. Vital signs: binge drinking prevalence, frequency, and intensity among adults—U.S., 2010. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2012; 61(1):14 –9.
6 SAMHSA. Data spotlight: Over 7 million children live with a parent with alcohol problems. 2012. Available at: http://media.samhsa.gov/data/spotlight/Spot061ChildrenOfAlcoholics2012.pdf
7 SAMHSA. 2012 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). Table 6.89B—Binge Alcohol Use in the Past Month among Persons Aged 18 to 22, by College Enrollment Status and Demographic Characteristics: Percentages, 2011 and 2012. Available at: http://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/NSDUH-DetTabs2012/NSDUH-DetTabs2012/HTML/NSDUH-DetTabsSect6peTabs55to107-2012.htm#Tab6.89B
8 Hingson, R.W.; Zha, W.; and Weitzman, E.R. Magnitude of and trends in alcohol-related mortality and morbidity among U.S. college students ages 18–24, 1998-2005. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs (Suppl. 16):12–20, 2009. PMID: 19538908 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2701090/