Europeans drink less every day but health experts warn of rise in binge drinking

Alcohol consumption trends have shifted in recent years, with daily consumption declining but occasional binge drinking continues to rise, according to a study published on Tuesday (23 January) by the French health agency SPF, which reflects a similar trend across Europe.

Read the original French article here.

The fall in daily alcohol consumption in France is nothing new. Compared to 2000, where weekly consumers of alcoholic beverages accounted for 62.6% of the population, this figure fell to 39.0% by 2021, according to the latest SPF figures.

These figures are similar to those reported for Belgium in the 2019 European Health Interview Survey (EHIS), but higher than those in Germany and lower than in Italy or Spain.

“Long-term trends show a decline in daily and weekly consumption over the last few decades, echoing the fall in sales volumes,” the French national health agency said in its report.

For Bernard Basset, president of the association Addictions France, this downward trend is clearly “generational”, especially regarding wine consumption. In other words, glasses of red wine with every meal are becoming a thing of the past.

Compared to 1975, when wine consumption per inhabitant was 100 litres per year, the figure for 2019 is only 40 litres, according to estimates by the French interprofessional network of wine producers known as CNIV.

However, while younger people (18-24 years) consume alcohol less frequently, they consume larger quantities than their elders, who drink more regularly.

The decline in daily alcohol consumption is also evident across Europe, according to a World Health Organisation report on health in Europe, 2022, which points out that total alcohol consumption per capita fell by 2.5 litres, or 21%, between 2000 and 2019.

However, these figures need to be put into perspective, as nine of the world’s top ten drinkers are in the EU, including the Czech Republic, Latvia, Germany and Spain, as well as Ireland and Bulgaria.

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More binge-drinking among women 

Although younger people (aged 18-24) drink less frequently, they consume larger quantities, unlike their elders, who drink more frequently but in smaller quantities.

The trend, better known as ‘binge drinking’, involves drinking large quantities of alcohol in a very short time.

But while the trend is declining among young people, it is increasing among women over 35, the French report added. Between 2017 and 2021, the proportion of women who ‘binge drank’ at least once a year went from 21.4% to 23%.

“There is a trend towards homogenisation of behaviour between men and women. The problem is that for the same amount of alcohol consumed, women are more vulnerable,” stressed Basset.

This is all the more true as rapid and excessive consumption can cause immediate brain damage, especially in young people, and predispose them to addiction later on.

“Excessive one-off consumption does not expose people to the same dangers as regular alcohol consumption,” pointed out MIDELCA, France’s inter-ministerial mission to combat drugs and addictive behaviour.

With this trend on the rise, MIDELCA warned that “loss of control, violent and impulsive behaviour can prove dangerous not only to others but also to oneself”.

The phenomenon is also on the rise in Europe, according to a report published in December by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Denmark, Romania, the UK, Luxembourg, Germany, and Belgium are among the world’s biggest binge drinkers while France ranks tenth.

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Government action?

But whether alcohol is consumed daily or only occasionally, French alcohol consumption remains one of the highest in Europe, according to the EHIS.

“We must continue to provide information and prevention on consumption, whatever the mode of consumption,” said Basset, as several prevention campaigns on the risks associated with alcohol consumption have been cancelled in France.

The most recent cancellation was in September when former health minister François Braun made a last-minute decision not to broadcast a campaign during the Rugby World Cup, Radio France revealed.

And some have already questioned whether France’s new health minister, Catherine Vautrin, will prioritise tackling heavy drinking, especially given the recent flak she has received for promoting champagne and UNESCO-listed vineyards on her X profile.

“I have to say that I wouldn’t have believed it possible for a minister of health to have a photo on her Twitter banner promoting alcohol,” France Assos Santé national coordinator Sylvain Fernandez-Curiel commented on X.

[Edited by Zoran Radosavljevic]

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