More teetotallers in Britain as binge drinking drops

The numbers of young British teetotallers has risen by nearly half in a decade, according to official statistics, while those who do drink are less likely to binge than their predecessors in recent generations, and less likely than older generations today.

In all, the office of national statistics (ONS) figures show that Britain is becoming a more sober place, which is partly – but only partly – explained by the rise in the size of the Muslim population in London, and in Birmingham in the West Midlands.

According to the survey, 27 per cent of all 16- to 24-year-olds across Britain are now non-drinkers – a rise from 19 per cent in 2005 – while teetotalism is more popular among adults – rising from 19 per cent in 2005 to 21 per cent by the end of 2013.

Trying to explain the fall among the young, the ONS said tougher underage drinking laws introduced in England and Wales – requiring publicans to demand proof of age – may have “made it more difficult for underage drinkers to purchase alcohol themselves”.

Teetotal adults

Equally, however, Britain’s changing demographics may have had an influence. London, for example, now has the highest percentage of teetotal adults – nearly a third – but it also has the largest percentage of ethnic minorities of any region. In the West Midlands, more than a quarter are now teetotal.

Interestingly, the path towards sobriety is not followed equally. The percentage of teetotal older women has actually fallen – by 8 per cent among those aged between 45 and 64 and by more than 15 per cent of those over 65. Binge-drinking by women – more than six units of alcohol in one sitting – has increased too.

Adults in the north of England and in Scotland who drank in the week before they were interviewed for the ONS survey were more likely to have binged than adults elsewhere. Nearly a third of people living in both places had binge-drank, compared with a quarter elsewhere.

Ethnic background

Professor Mark Bellis, a home office adviser, criticised the report for not delving into the ethnic background of drinkers, saying that a headline that argues that people are drinking less could be hiding some truths.

“[It] is hiding lots of alcohol consumption in groups who we need to be challenging on the issue, such as middle-aged drinkers who are well known to drink far more than recommended levels,” he said.

Despite the falling figures, nearly 8,500 people died from illnesses linked to drinking in Britain in 2013 – including 1,100 in Scotland.

Men working as cleaners, labourers, or in other manual jobs are five times more likely to die an alcohol-linked death, while women in low-paid jobs are nearly twice as likely as those in professional, higher-paid occupations.

Alcohol-linked death rates were highest among those aged 60 to 64 years, claiming 45.3 lives in each 100,000 men, compared with 22.4 in each 100,000 women. “It’s concerning,” said Drinkaware chief executive Elaine Hindal.

Meanwhile, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists says pregnant women should not drink any alcohol in the first three months. It had believed that a couple of glasses of wine each week were acceptable.