Research & Resources

A longitudinal study examined the individual contributions of an episodic heavy drinking pattern versus a high average level of drinking as predictors of drinking problems. Researchers assessed alcohol consumption and indexed drinking problems of 1,107 adults aged 55-65 across 20 years. Findings showed that a high average level of drinking and an episodic heavy pattern of drinking each independently increased the number of drinking problems by more than 50%. The study “Late-Life Drinking Problems: The Predictive Roles of Drinking Level vs. Drinking Pattern,” is published in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism supported this research effort.