Two researchers who analyzed the results of one of the largest surveys of substance abuse conducted in the US found a remarkable proportion of older Americans reported binge drinking, ie consuming five or more alcoholic drinks at a time, in the previous month.
The researchers, Drs Dan G Blazer and Li-Tzy Wu, both from Duke University Medical Center in Durham, North Carolina, reported their findings in the 17 August online issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry. Blazer, who is JP Gibbons Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Duke was the lead author.
He said in a press statement that:
“A surprising number of older Americans are engaging in drinking patterns that are putting their health at risk, yet these problems often go unrecognized.”
“With this study we’ve learned that adults, especially those in their fifties, are carrying a heavier drinking burden into late life.”
For the study the researchers carried out a secondary analysis of data from the 2005-2006 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, which asked a nationally representative sample of nearly 11,000 men and women over 50 questions about their consumption of alcohol over the last year and the number of alcoholic beverages they drank on a drinking day during the preceding 30 days.
They used the American Geriatrics Society Guidelines to define binge and at risk drinking levels.
The analysis showed that 22 per cent of men and 9 per cent of women aged 50 to 64 reported binge drinking, that is consuming five or more alcoholic drinks at a time, in the last month.
It also found that among those 65 and over, 14 per cent of the men and 3 per cent of the women reported binge drinking.
A substantial proportion of older Americans was also found to be in the “at risk drinking” category, that is consuming two or more alcoholic drinks a day.
Among 50 to 64 year olds, 19 per cent of the men and 13 per cent of the women reported regularly drinking 2 alcoholic beverages every day, and among the 65 and over group these figures were 13 per cent of men and 8 per cent of women.
Blazer said these trends highlight a potential looming problem as the baby boomer generation ages. If they continue to drink at this rate as they enter their senior years they could significantly compromise their health, which is already challenged by the fact the body’s natural defences weaken as as we age.
The net effect could range from an increase in minor injuries to a higher rate of more serious problems like stroke and diseases of the liver and cardiovascular system, plus brain damage and poor control of diabetes.
Blazer and Wu recommend that screening for substance use should be more thoroughly applied and more counselling should be on offer.
“Middle age and older adults may be easy to miss for at-risk or binge drinking because most clinicians are focused on excessive drinking behaviors among young people, such as those in college,” said Blazer.
“They also don’t show the typical signs of alcohol dependence,” he added.
“The Epidemiology of At-Risk and Binge Drinking Among Middle-Aged and Elderly Community Adults: National Survey on Drug Use and Health.”
Dan G. Blazer and Li-Tzy Wu.
Am J Psychiatry, first published on Aug 17, 2009
DOI: 10.1176/appi.ajp.2009.09010016
Additional Source: Duke Medicine News.
Written by: Catharine Paddock, PhD