Over 65s are ‘bigger drinkers’ than young people

Over 65s are now the most likely age group to drink alcohol every day – and are twice as likely to end up in hospital with alcohol problems, a new report has found.

The report revealed one in seven people in Australia aged 65 or over drink alcohol every day

According to a new study published by the New South Wales Health Department called Trends in alcohol use and health-related harms in NSW: Report of the Chief Health Officer 2016, one in seven people aged 65 or over drink alcohol every day in Australia – while less than 1% of people aged 16-24 drink daily.

Additionally, people aged 65 or over are twice as likely to end up in hospital because of alcohol related problems compared to people aged 16-24.

Although young people are more likely to binge drink – with one in three people aged 16-24 drinking at levels that put them at “long term risk” – the number of people aged 15-24 attending emergency departments for acute alcohol related problems dropped from 3,500 in 2007 to 3,000 in 2015.

The report also revealed that young people are delaying their first drink. High school students who drank alcohol in the last 12 months dropped from 63.5% in 2005 to 43.7% in 2014.