Do People Drink Less Alcohol as They Age?

Most
cross-sectional population surveys indicate that alcohol
consumption decreases with age. Whether this decreased
consumption is actually due to aging, rather than to cohort
effects (shared characteristics among people born around
the same time) or period effects (factors that impact
everyone during a certain period), is unknown. To address
this question, a researcher reviewed population surveys
in Scotland, The Netherlands, and the United States.

• Abstinence
  rates increased with
  age, supporting an aging effect (e.g., as adults age,
  they are more likely than others to abstain). However,
  rates of lifetime abstinence also increased with age,
  suggesting a cohort effect (e.g., greater proportion
  of older birth cohorts with lifetime abstinence), particularly
  in women.
• Mean
  alcohol consumption decreased with age. However,
  within each age group, consumption generally increased
  across time, suggesting a possible period effect. There
  was some evidence for a cohort effect in women.
• Heavy
  drinking* rates
  also decreased with age but generally increased within
  each age group, except for in the United States.

Comments:

The
cross-sectional nature and methodological heterogeneity
of studies reviewed in this paper made it difficult for
the researcher to answer her question: “is reduced drinking
with age normal?” Because the relative importance of aging,
cohort, and period effects is uncertain, we cannot confidently
predict whether the baby boom and younger generations
will maintain their current levels of drinking in the
future. Despite this uncertainty and given the prevalence
of alcohol use in the elderly, healthcare providers should
remain alert to potential alcohol problems and consequences
in their older patients.

Kevin L. Kraemer, MD, MSc

Reference:

Gilhooly
MLM. Reduced drinking with age: is it normal? Addiction
Research and Theory. 2005;13(3):267-280.