Since the pandemic, American drinking rates have only gone up
Dec 7, 2024, 1:47 PM
FILE - In this Nov. 8, 2018, file photo, cases of beer are stacked next to each other in a Milwaukee liquor store. (AP Photo/Ivan Moreno, File)
(AP Photo/Ivan Moreno, File)
SALT LAKE CITY — Americans started drinking more alcohol during the pandemic, and experts say they haven’t stopped.
5.1 percent of Americans were reported as heavy drinkers in 2018. That went up a whole percent to 6.13 percent in 2020 and then increased again in 2022, reaching 6.3 percent, according to the Annals of Internal Medicine.
Experts say the stress from the pandemic and being at home all the time raised alcohol sales across the country. They said the stress of the pandemic could be a major factor in the trend, since alcohol is often used as a coping mechanism — and what might start as a habit could quickly become addictive.
The biggest change was among white Americans, with white women seeing the biggest uptick in heavy drinking, according to the report. Experts who worked on the study said it’s a dangerous trend, and it doesn’t take much alcohol to increase health risks in a population.
Contributing: Jacob Freeman, KSL TV
