Very heavy drinking among the nation’s top 10% of drinkers has increased in the past decade while lighter drinkers have cut back further, according to a new analysis of Australian drinking habits since 2001.
Dr Michael Livingston, who will present the results at the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre Annual Symposium, analysed data from four successive National Drug Strategy Household Surveys since 2001. Each survey involved more than 20,000 Australians aged 14 and over. The top 10% of drinkers are drinking between four and five per cent more than a decade ago. At the other end of the scale more people were abstaining altogether and lighter drinkers were drinking even less.
On average Australians drink 10 litres of pure alcohol a year per head. The top 10% of drinkers now account for 52% of total alcohol consumed, compared with 49% a decade ago. On average the top five per cent of drinkers are drinking 140 more standard drinks a year compared with a decade ago. > > > > Read More
