By OPEN MINDS Circle
In 2018, the prevalence of binge drinking varied across states from 1.5 days per month, to 2.1 days per month. Binge drinking is defined differently for men and women, generally reflecting the fact that women weigh less than men. For men, binge drinking is defined as consuming five or more drinks on at least one occasion; for women the bar is four or more drinks. About 17.4% of adults reported binge drinking in 2018. Among adults who binge drank, 25% did so at least weekly and 25% consumed at least eight drinks during a binge occasion.
Across the U.S., one in six US adults binge drank in 2018. Binge drinking was most common among men, with a 22.5% prevalence compared to 12.6% for women. Adults who had higher family incomes saw the highest prevalence of binge drinking: 21.4% for those with a household income of $75,000 or more, compared to 19.0% for those with a household income of $50,000 to $74,999; 17.8% for those with a household income of $25,000 to $49,999; and 14.6% for those with a household income less than $25,000. Non-Hispanic White adults had the highest prevalence of all races/ethnicities (19.7%).
Those living in the Midwest had the highest prevalence (20.0%) in 2018 of all U.S. Census regions. However, the South had the highest weighted number of adults reporting binge drinking, at 13.7 million individuals.
These findings were presented in “Binge Drinking Among Adults, by Select Characteristics and State — United States, 2018,” by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Researchers for the CDC analyzed data from the 2018 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS). The goal was to estimate past 30-day binge drinking prevalence, frequency, and intensity (number of drinks per occasion), overall and by select characteristics and state.
For more information, contact: Division of Population Health, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Road, Atlanta, Georgia 30329; 770-488-3928; Email: media@cdc.gov; Website: https://www.cdc.gov/