The news
Binge drinking among adults ages 35 to 50 hit record prevalence in 2022, according to research funded by the National Institutes of Health. A new study found that nearly 30 percent of people in this age group reported binge drinking by 2022, continuing a steady upward trend in the behavior. In 2012, 23 percent of such adults reported binge drinking.
Marijuana use among this group has also reached historic levels, with 28 percent reporting the behavior, up from 13 percent in 2012. By 2022, 4 percent of adults in this group will reported hallucinogen use, double the number in 2021.
The survey also looked at behavior among adults 19 to 30 years old. For this group, marijuana use in 2022 was greater, at 44 percent, up from 28 percent in 2012. But their self-reported binge drinking fell to 30.5 percent, down from 35.2 percent last year. decade.
Why It Matters: Alcohol-related deaths have increased among people 65 and older.
Different generations use different drugs and to different degrees. “Trends in drug use change over decades and across development, from youth to adulthood,” said Megan Patrick, a research professor at the University of Michigan and principal investigator on the study. , known as Monitoring the Future.
The research has been supported since 1975 by the National Institutes of Drug Abuse, or NIDA, which is a part of the NIH. and high school. But the research also follows people throughout their lives, looking at the use of alcohol, marijuana, cigarettes and other substances.
“It’s important to monitor this so that public health professionals and communities are prepared to respond,” said Dr. Patrick.
The implications of what drugs a generation uses most often can be significant. For example, a recent study found that alcohol-related deaths continue to rise among people 65 and older, with deaths among women in this age group increasing faster than those among man
what next
The study suggests that substance use behavior is heavily influenced by the culture of a generation and the legal status of different drugs at different times of life. For example, among adults aged 35 to 50, 50-year-olds have tried marijuana the least – only 68 percent of them report having used it at least once in their lifetime. “These respondents graduated from high school in 1990, when marijuana and other drugs were at or near historic lows over the past four decades, suggesting a cohort effect,” the study said. student
Nora Volkow, the director of NIDA, said in a news release that data from this study and others like it can inform how health officials and individuals address the risks posed by others. different stages of life. “We want to make sure that people from the earliest to the last stages of adulthood are equipped with up-to-date knowledge to help inform decisions related to substance abuse,” said Dr. Volkow.
