- A Gallup poll found 54% of U.S. adults say they drink alcohol, hitting a new low.
- The decrease in drinking is greater among women than men.
- Health benefits from moderate alcohol consumption are turning out to be overrated.
For the first time, most Americans view even moderate alcohol consumption as a health risk. And imbibing has hit a record low, according to a new Gallup poll that says just 54% of U.S. adults in 2025 say they drink.
The findings come from Gallup’s yearly Consumption Habits survey, which was conducted July 7-21, according to Gallup News.
Gallup said that between 1997 and 2023, at least 6 in 10 adults reported drinking alcohol; by 2024 the share had fallen to 58%. The previous low rate was 55% of adults who drink alcohol, recorded in the 1958 poll. The highs were 68% to 71% between 1974 and 1981.
Per Gallup, “The consecutive declines in Americans’ reported drinking the past few years are unmatched in Gallup’s trend and coincide with recent research indicating that any level of alcohol consumption may negatively affect health. This has been a sharp reversal from previous recommendations that moderate drinking could offer some protective benefits.”
The decrease has been greater among women than men, dropping 11 percentage points to 51%. Consumption of alcohol by men has dropped 5 points to 57%.
Young adults drink less than middle-aged and older adults, at 50%, but those older groups say they’re also drinking less.
More Democrats than Republicans now say they drink, Gallup reported, noting that among Republicans it has fallen 19 points to 46%, while Democrats are “holding steady at 61%,” though that’s down from 64% in 2023.
Is it that they’re choosing different substances, like recreational marijuana? According to Gallup, that doesn’t seem to be the case, although the latter substance is legal in half of states. “Although marijuana use is higher today than a decade ago,” Gallup reported, “it has been fairly steady over the past four years and thus doesn’t appear to be a factor in people choosing not to drink alcohol.”
Not good for you
Gallup found for the first time that a majority of American adults — 53% — say even a drink or two a day is bad for health. Just 6% say it’s good, while 37% say it makes no difference. Between 2001 and 2011, just a quarter of adults saw moderate consumption as bad for health.
Young adults, those 18 to 34, are the most likely to consider alcohol drinking as harmful, at about two-thirds. The share of older adults who agree has been growing, but fewer of them are convinced of harms compared to young adults. About half of older adults agree alcohol consumption is unhealthy.
Women are more likely than men to see moderate drinking as unhealthy (60% vs. 47% for men). Perhaps unexpectedly, considering the consumption numbers, Democrats are more likely to say moderate drinking is unhealthy (58%), compared to independents (55%) and Republicans (44%). Gallup notes just slight differences based on race/ethnicity, income and education.
Cutting back
Among those who drink, the amount consumed has decreased. “A record-low 24% of drinkers say they had a drink in the past 24 hours, while 40% say it has been more than a week since they last consumed alcohol, the highest percentage since 2000. Factoring in all drinkers, including those who did not drink in the past week, the average number of drinks consumed over the past seven days is 2.8, the lowest figure Gallup has recorded since 1996,” per the report. The highest recorded was in 2003, at 5.1 drinks a week.
Those who are concerned are as likely to drink alcohol as those who aren’t, but they do consume fewer drinks.
Beer is still the alcoholic beverage drinkers consume most often (38%), compared to liquor (30%) and wine (29%). Men are far more apt to name beer (52% vs. 23%) and women are more apt than men to prefer wine (44% vs. 14%). There’s not much difference when it comes to preference for liquor. Young and middle-aged adults are more fond of beer. Young adults are “the least likely to favor wine.”
Health advice changes trajectory
In 2024, Deseret News reported on studies that were “casting doubt or outright rejecting pretty much every study that suggests alcohol has health benefits.” The article noted that studies showed deaths related to alcohol consumption were rising and while increased consumption increased risk, they found “no safe amount” of alcohol.
At the time, Dr. Spencer Hansen, a board-certified addiction specialist at LDS Hospital told Deseret News that earlier reports of health benefits might be overestimated and wrongly attributed.
Those who control their drinking patterns, he said, “generally live a healthier lifestyle than individuals who cannot control their drinking, so they’re also able to control their diet, or their various physical health lifestyle choices that contribute to overall health.”
He and other addiction experts said that the risk of alcohol consumption varies based on genetics, psychological makeup, environment, social background, experiences and other factors. “Some people, one drop of alcohol or one drink of alcohol is too much,” Hansen said. “And it can begin a cascade of drinking that results in significant harm.”
Mark Petticrew, a researcher at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, told The Guardian, “One reason why there’s a public belief in these protective effects is because the industry has funded and promoted research, like the tobacco industry did.”
Excessive alcohol use is a leading preventable death in the U.S., per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which noted about 178,000 people die from excessive alcohol consumption annually. The deaths can come from years of drinking too much or from drinking too much at one time.
The CDC also notes that alcohol is the most common substance used among those 12 and older in the U.S.
Alcohol can increase the risk of or exacerbate certain cancers, heart disease and stroke, the public health giant reported.