More Americans than ever are choosing not to drink alcohol, according to a new Gallup Poll.
Only 54% of respondents to Gallup’s annual Consumption Habits survey conducted last month say they consume alcohol, which is the lowest on record in nearly 90 years.
“This coincides with a growing belief among Americans that moderate alcohol consumption is bad for one’s health, now the majority view for the first time,” Gallup said in a press release.
The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism cites nine body systems impacted by alcohol use.
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“Current research points to health risks even at low amounts of alcohol consumption, regardless of beverage type,” its website says.
Those who do drink are drinking less, Gallup reported, averaging about 2.8 drinks a week. Over the past two years, Republicans have reported a sharp drop in drinking habits, but Democrats’ percentage has held fairly steady.
The highest number of Americans who reported drinking alcohol, at 68 to 71%, were all recorded between 1974 and 1981, Gallup said.
Beer is still the “most preferred alcohol,” the global analytics and advisory firm said, adding that it “[h]as documented three consecutive years of decline in the U.S. drinking rate as research supporting the ‘no amount of alcohol is safe’ message mounts.”
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Gallup does not believe the decline in alcohol consumption is caused by people shifting to other mood-altering substances, in particular recreational marijuana, which is not legal in approximately half of the U.S. states.
