Two measures of alcohol consumption are used in this report (one daily-based and the other weekly-based) reflecting the move from weekly to daily-based guidelines from the Department of Health in 1996. Thus, trend data is currently available only for the weekly-based measures. However, 2000 was the second year in which the questions relating to maximum daily amount were asked.

There were no significant changes between 1998 and 2000 in the proportions of men and women who had exceeded the recommended number of daily units on at least one day. However, there was an increase in heavy drinking among women: the proportion of women who had drunk more than 6 units on at least one day in the previous week rose from 8% in 1998 to 10% in 2000.

Weekly alcohol consumption level

During the 1990s there has been a slight increase in overall alcohol consumption among men and a much more marked one among women. This pattern continued between 1998 and 2000 when men’s consumption rose by 0.3 units per week, from 17.1 to 17.4 units, while women’s consumption rose by twice this amount, from 6.5 to 7.1 units. In particular, weekly consumption among young women increased significantly between 1998 and 2000. Among women aged 16 to 24, the proportion drinking more than 14 units rose from 25% in 1998 to 33% in 2000 and their average weekly consumption rose from 11.0 to 12.6 units – the 2000 figure being equivalent to about a litre of wine a week.

See Chapter 9