More than 1 in 4 Aussies Exceed Recommended Drinking Limits

Warmer ingredients spice up this mocktail that can be served with sparkling water and non-alcohol liquor. Amy Denney

Australians in every state are exceeding recommended alcohol consumption levels, new data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) reveals.

According to the ABS’s National Health Survey, more than one in four Australians are drinking above the advised limits, which are “no more than 10 standard drinks a week and no more than four standard drinks on any one day.”

Northern Territory topped the list of adults who exceeded guidelines at 31.1 percent, followed by Western Australia at 29.9 percent, Queensland at 29.4 percent, and South Australia at 29.3 percent.

In Tasmania, 28.9 percent are drinking more than this guideline, compared to 27.4 percent in the ACT, 25.2 percent in NSW, and 24.3 percent in Victoria.

Despite these guidelines, the ABS survey found that more than one in five Australian adults reported consuming five or more alcoholic beverages on at least one day monthly over the past year.

In NSW, for instance, 19.2 percent of adults engaged in this level of drinking, while 17.3 percent exceeded 10 drinks in the last week.

Similarly, in Victoria, 17.9 percent of adults consumed five or more standard drinks on any day at least once per month, while 16.5 percent had more than 10 drinks in the past week. Queensland showed that one in five adults consumed more than 10 drinks in the past week.

Draft beers. AP Photo/Keith Srakocic

Among young adults aged 18 to 24 years, two in five reported consuming five or more standard drinks on any day monthly, higher than any other age group in Queensland.

In addition, one in four adults aged 55 to 64 had consumed more than 10 drinks in the same timeframe.

In Tasmania, 21.7 percent had five or more drinks on any day at least monthly, while 20.9 percent drank more than 10 drinks in the last week.

The ACT had 18.2 percent of adults surpassing 10 drinks in the last week, while one in five drank five or more drinks on any day monthly.

Western Australia reported that 20.7 percent of adults had drank more than 10 alcoholic beverages in the last week, with one in four having five or more drinks on any day monthly.

South Australia had similar figures, with one in five adults exceeding 10 alcoholic beverages weekly, and one in five consuming five or more drinks on any day monthly.

Overall, adults aged 18 to 44 years were more inclined than those over 45 years to engage in monthly consumption of five or more alcoholic beverages on any day.