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Study Reveals Dramatic Rise In Binge Drinking Among Those Over 50

Researchers have connected the uptick in their drinking to health declines.
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By 

Senior Reporter, HuffPost

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Jose Luis Pelaez Inc via Getty Images

Baby Boomers ― historically speaking, no strangers to consciousness-altering substances ― are clearly back in the thick of things. A new study just determined that they are binge-drinking with renewed fervor ― news that followed on the heels of another study that found they’ve rediscovered marijuana with something of a vengeance.

Dr. Benjamin Han, a geriatrician and health services researcher at NYU Langone Medical Center, studied data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health from 2005 to 2014 in which participants self-reported their past-month alcohol intake. Han’s team looked to find trends of alcohol use disorder in those aged 50 or older.
The researchers found large increases in binge-drinking ― a 19 percent hike in the number of over-50s drinking excessively in one sitting. Most of the binging is being done by women ― a fact that one researcher called “alarming.”
”Older adults have particular vulnerabilities to alcohol due to physiological changes during aging,” said Han in a press release. “However, no recent studies have estimated trends in alcohol use, including binge alcohol use and alcohol use disorders among older adults.”

Women, the study noted, experience more psychological changes in lean body mass compared to males. Hence, they may experience the adverse effects associated with consuming alcohol even in lower amounts.

So what’s behind the return to substance use? Matching up with the significant increases in binge alcohol use among older adults were those who reported “fair/poor” health and/or multiple chronic conditions. This population is particularly vulnerable to the negative effects of alcohol as it can impact chronic disease management or increase the risk of injury, said Han.

“Health care providers need to be made aware of this increasing trend of unhealthy alcohol use, particularly among older females, and ensure that screening for unhealthy alcohol use is part of regular medical care for this population” he added.

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Before You Go

7 Things To Know About Women And Alcohol
1. More Women Are Binge Drinking(01 of07)
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According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates released earlier this year, nearly 14 million women in the U.S. binge drink roughly three times a month. For women, binge drinking is defined as having four or more drinks in a single period, but most women average six drinks per binge. Women with a household incomes above $75,000 are more likely to binge, as are women age 18 to 34 and in high school. According to the CDC, 1 in 5 teenage girls binge drink, a behavior that poses serious health risks, including unintentional injuries, alcohol poisoning, liver disease and stroke, among others. (credit:Getty)
2. Women Drink "Less Well" Than Men(02 of07)
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Women's bodies tolerate alcohol differently than men's for reasons that are not yet fully understood, Slate explains. It may be that the hormone estrogen interacts with alcohol in a way that increases the risk for liver problems, Slate says, or it could be due to differences in stomach enzymes. Plus, as the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) points out, women's bodies have less water per pound than men's. If a man and woman who weigh the same amount drink the same amount of alcohol, the woman will likely have a higher blood alcohol concentration, because alcohol disperses in water and her body has less. (credit:Getty)
3. Drinking Becomes Problematic For Women At Lower Levels ...(03 of07)
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Largely because women's bodies tolerate alcohol differently than men's, they're more likely to be at risk for alcohol-related problems. Those risks include specific health diseases and conditions, such as liver disease, heart disease and breast cancer, as well as alcohol dependence. The NIAAA defines the "low-risk" drinking limit as no more than seven drinks per week for women, and no more than three drinks in any one sitting. For men, it's no more than 14 drinks per week, and four drinks in any one day. (credit:Getty)
4. ... But They Seek Treatment Sooner(04 of07)
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As HuffPost's Amanda Chan previously reported, a new study released earlier this summer, which included more than 500 males and females, found that women who abuse alcohol tend to seek out help four to five years earlier than their male counterparts. Why that is, isn't exactly clear at this point, although in a statement, Rosemary Fama (a senior research scientist at Stanford University, who did not work on the study) hypothesized that women may attach less social stigma to drinking problems than men, and therefore may be more likely to report theirs, according to HealthDay. (credit:Getty)
5. During Pregnancy, No Amount Has Been Proven Safe(05 of07)
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A new book "Expecting Better: Why the Conventional Pregnancy Wisdom Is Wrong and What You really Need To Know" has made waves for challenging many of the beliefs women and their doctors have long held, among them, that drinking during pregnancy is strictly off limits. Occasional drinking may not pose any danger, concludes author Emily Oster, an economist who was inspired to analyze the existing scientific literature when she became pregnant. But the fact remains that no amount of alcohol during pregnancy has been proven to be safe. In other words, there exists no clearly defined threshold at which experts can say alcohol consumption is safe, which is why most advise simply avoiding it altogether. (credit:Getty)
6. Drinking Ups Breast Cancer Risk(06 of07)
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"The use of alcohol is clearly linked to an increased risk of developing breast cancer," the American Cancer Society warns -- and that risk increases with the more alcohol a woman consumes. For example, a woman who sips only one drink a day has a very small increase in overall risk, the ACS explains, whereas a woman who has up to five drinks a day has roughly one-and-a-half times the risk of a woman who doesn't drink at all. That said, drinking is hardly the only risk factor for the disease -- there are many others that contribute, including a woman's lifestyle and her genes. (credit:Getty)
7. Alcoholism May Be Deadlier In Women(07 of07)
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A German study published last year concluded that alcohol dependence is twice as deadly for women as for men. The death rate for alcohol-dependent women was four times that of a sample of comparable, non-addicted, 18- to 64-year-old women, but only double for men. While the "why" is unclear, the research is in line with other studies suggesting the effect of alcohol on women is "particularly harsh," CASAColumbia's vice president and director of policy research and analysis told HuffPost. (credit:Getty)
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