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 Alabama has the 4th lowest level of excessive drinking in America, according to a new analysis from financial news and opinion website 24/7 Wall St. Of metropolitan areas within the state, Auburn-Opelika residents report the highest excessive drinking rates. You can find the full report, the detailed findings and methodology, and America’s drunkest and most sober states by clicking on the links.
To identify the drunkest states in America, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the percentage of men and women over 18 who report binge or heavy drinking in every state. Excessive alcohol consumption, according to the CDC, includes binge drinking and heavy drinking. Binge drinking is defined as four or more drinks in a single occasion for women and five or more for men, and heavy drinking is defined as at least eight drinks per week for women and 15 for men.
In Alabama, 13.0% of adults drink to excess on a regular basis. This is a considerably lower share than the 18.0% of adults who binge or drink heavily nationwide. Although excessive drinking can lead to serious health problems, including liver cancer and cardiovascular disease, states with lower shares of adults drinking excessively are often less healthy than states reporting higher shares of excessive drinking. An estimated 21.2% of adults in Alabama are in fair or poor health, the fourth largest share of any state.
24/7 Wall St. also interviewed the director of the National Institute for Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, George Koob. Koob says there is a clear correlation between a state’s excessive drinking rate and income. Among the states with the highest excessive drinking rates, the annual median household income tends to be much greater than in states with lower drinking rates.
Koob added that the pattern is complicated, and noted that while there is a correlation on the state level, “If you look at individuals, the pattern is somewhat different.” While indeed a larger share of affluent individuals drink excessively, “…they do so less heavily.” Similarly, while low-income individuals drink to excess less frequently, the amount of alcohol they consume tends to be greater when they do drink.
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