WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - According to Keck Medicine of USC study, people started consuming alcohol more during the COVID-19 pandemic, and their consumption kept on increasing even after the pandemic ended.
The study, which analyzed data from surveys of over 24,000 adults aged 18 and older nationwide, highlighted 'an alarming public health issue that may require a combination of policy changes.'
Published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, the research found that heavy alcohol consumption by Americans rose by 20 percent from 2018 to 2020, and then jumped another 4 percent from 2020 to 2022.
The researchers defined heavy drinking as more than or equal to five drinks a day or 15 drinks a week for men, and more than or equal to four drinks a day or eight drinks a week for women.
'These numbers reflect an alarming public health issue that could result in severe health consequences for far too many people,' said Brian P. Lee, a hepatologist and liver transplant specialist, and principal investigator of the study. 'Our results suggest men and women under 50 are at special risk.'
The rise in alcohol use was seen across all regions of the U.S., genders, races and ethnicities, except for Native Americans and Asian Americans.
'Our study suggests that these increases persisted in 2022 and that certain subgroups may have had greater increases in heavy alcohol use,' the researchers noted.
'Potential causes of this sustained increase include normalization of and adaptation to increased drinking due to stress from the pandemic and disrupted access to medical services.'
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, excessive alcohol use is the leading cause of illness and death in the U.S.
The researchers suggested, 'Increased screening efforts for harmful drinking with systematic integration and rapid linkage to behavioral health treatments by health care professionals, in tandem with community-based interventions for at-risk populations, should be considered to mitigate the public health consequences of the pandemic-related increase in alcohol use.'
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