STUDY: No Surprise. Americans Drinking More in 2020 Than The Year Before
It's not every year you have to deal with a worldwide pandemic and the other crap 2020 had thrown our way. The shutdown lead to millions losing their jobs, and to say people are anxious would be an understatement. So, when people get stressed they reach for the bottle.
According to a study posted by a group called JAMA, Americans are drinking more often and in higher quantities than they did the year before. For many people here in New York state, they spent the majority of the spring pretty much indoors under stay at home orders. It can get boring and tedious being indoors for so long.
Now, if you break down the numbers, the groups who's drinking increased the most according to this study were women and people overall ages 30 to 59. From Axios:
- On average, alcohol was consumed one day more per month by three of four adults.
- Frequency of alcohol consumption for women increased by 17%. Heavy drinking among women — four or more drinks within a few hours — spiked 41% since 2019.
- Adults aged 30 to 59 years increased their drinking by 19% since last year.
there was an old episode of The Simpsons that made the a bold statment about alcohol being "the cause of, and solution to all life's problems". It is very true. while it can make you forget a bad day, or help you sleep, the long term effects can be deadly. Plus, according to many health professionals, long term alcohol use can increase anxiety in individuals.
Of course, with the economy not getting any better, and no vaccine for COVID-19 on the market in the near future, what are people going to do?