U.S. Department of Health

& Human Services 

National Institutes of Health 

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse 

and Alcoholism 

Number 68 April 2006 

YOUNG ADULT DRINKING

Too often today’s headlines bring news of yet another 

alcohol-related tragedy involving a young person—a case 

of fatal alcohol poisoning on a college campus or a latenight drinking–driving crash. People ages 18 to 25 often 

are in the news, but are they really at higher risk than anyone else for problems involving alcohol? 

Some of the most important new data to emerge on young 

adult drinking were collected through a recent nationwide 

survey, the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol 

and Related Conditions (NESARC). According to these 

data, in 2001–2002 about 70 percent of young adults in 

the United States, or about 19 million people, consumed 

alcohol in the year preceding the survey. 

It’s not only that young people are drinking but the way 

they drink that puts them at such high risk for alcoholrelated problems. Research consistently shows that people 

tend to drink the heaviest in their late teens and early to 

mid-twenties (1,2). Young adults are especially likely to 

binge drink and to drink heavily1 (3). According to NESARC 

data, about 46 percent of young adults (12.4 million) 

engaged in drinking that exceeded the recommended daily 

limits2 at least once in the past year, and 14.5 percent (3.9 

million) had an average consumption that exceeded the 

recommended weekly limits.3 

Such risky drinking often leads to tragic consequences (5)— 

most notably alcohol-related traffic fatalities (6). Thirty-two 

percent of drivers ages 16–20 who died in traffic crashes in 

2003 had measurable alcohol in their blood, and 51 percent 

of drivers ages 21–24 who died tested positive for alcohol 

(7). Clearly, then, young adult drinkers pose a serious public health threat, putting themselves and others at risk. 

1 In this study, binge drinking was defined as consuming five or more drinks in a row at least 

once in the past month. Drinking heavily was defined as consuming five or more drinks in a 

row on at least five occasions in the past month (3). 

2 The recommended daily limits for moderate alcohol consumption are no more than two 

drinks for men or one drink for women per day (4). 

3 According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), men may be 

at risk for alcohol-related problems if their alcohol consumption exceeds 14 standard drinks 

per week or 4 drinks per day, and women may be at risk if they have more than 7 standard 

drinks per week or 3 drinks per day. A standard drink is defined as one 12-ounce bottle of 

beer, one 5-ounce glass of wine, or 1.5 ounces of distilled spirits. 

An Age of Exploration 

Young adulthood is a stage of life marked by change and 

exploration. People move out of their parents’ homes and 

into dormitories or houses with peers. They go to college, 

begin to work full-time, and form serious relationships. 

They explore their own identities and how they fit in the 

world. The roles of parents weaken and the influences of 

peers gain greater strength. Young adults are on their own 

for the first time, free to make their own decisions, including the decision to drink alcohol. 

Young adulthood also is the time during which young 

people obtain the education and training they need for 

future careers. Mastery of these endeavors is vital to future 

success; problems with school and work can produce frustration and stress, which can lead to a variety of unhealthy 

behaviors, including increased drinking. Conversely, alcohol 

use during this important time of transition can impede 

the successful mastery of these developmental tasks (8), 

also increasing stress. 

Alcohol and the Maturing Brain 

Research shows that the brain continues to develop throughout adolescence and well into young adulthood. Many 

scientists are concerned that drinking during this critical 

developmental period may lead to lifelong impairments in 
brain function, particularly as it relates to memory, motor 

skills, and coordination (9). Young adults are particularly 

likely to binge drink4 and to suffer repeated bouts of withdrawal from alcohol. This repeated withdrawal may be a 

key reason for alcohol’s harmful effects on the brain (10). 

Even though research shows that drinking early in life can 

lead to impairment of brain function in adulthood, findings also show that not all young people who drink heavily 

or become alcohol dependent will experience the same 

level of impairment, and some may not show any damage 

at all (11). This is because factors such as genetics, drinking 

patterns, and the use of other drugs also influence risk. 

Factors That Influence Use 

Outside influences as well as individual characteristics help 

determine whether a person will begin drinking and how 

much he or she will consume. Some of these factors increase 

a person’s risk for problems with alcohol, whereas others 

serve to protect him or her from harm, as outlined below. 

Gender—Men are much more likely than women to 

drink in ways that are harmful. As shown in a recent 

national survey of 19- to 30-year-olds, 45 percent of 

men and 26.7 percent of women reported heavy drinking (defined in that study as five or more drinks on one 

occasion) in the past 2 weeks, and 7.4 percent of men 

and 3 percent of women reported daily drinking (12). 

Race/Ethnicity—Racial, ethnic, and cultural differences 

in drinking and alcohol-related problems also have been 

documented. In general, White and Native American 

young adults drink more than African Americans and 

Asians, and drinking rates for Hispanics fall in the middle. In addition, while drinking among Whites tends to 

peak around ages 19–22, heavy drinking among African 

Americans and Hispanics peaks later and persists longer 

into adulthood (13). Researchers suggest that these ethnic differences result, in part, from the fact that Whites 

see heavy drinking as part of a youthful lifestyle, whereas 

Hispanics tend to see heavy drinking as a “right” they 

earn when they reach maturity. 

College vs. Noncollege Status—Many people think that 

the college campus environment itself encourages heavy 

drinking (14). Alcohol use is present at most college social 

functions, and many students view college as a place to 

drink excessively. Yet several studies have found that heavy 

drinking and related problems are pervasive among people 

in their early twenties, regardless of whether they attend 

college or not (15,16). In fact, a recent survey shows that 

college students drink less frequently than their noncollege peers (that is, 3.7 percent of students report daily 

drinking vs. 4.5 percent of nonstudents). However, when 

students do drink, such as at parties on the weekends, they 

tend to drink in greater quantities than nonstudents 5 (17). 

On the other hand, students tend to stop these drinking 

practices more quickly than nonstudents—perhaps 

“maturing out” of harmful alcohol use before it becomes 

a long-term problem (16). Rates of alcohol dependence 

diagnosis appear lower for college students than for 18­

to 24-year-olds in the general population (15). And people in their thirties who did not go to college reported a 

higher prevalence of heavy drinking than people who did 

go to college (18). 

Employment—Being employed full-time after high school 

was associated with a slight increase in current drinking 

and a slight decrease in heavy drinking. Unemployed 

men, but not women, especially tended to reduce their 

drinking. Homemakers reduced both their current and 

heavy drinking, but this may have been because of increasing responsibilities stemming from marital and parental 

roles rather than the result of being a homemaker (19). 

Military Service—Young adults in the military are more 

likely to drink heavily (i.e., consume five or more drinks 

per typical drinking occasion at least once a week) than 

older enlistees. In 2002, 27 percent of adults ages 18 to 

25 in the military reported heavy drinking, compared 

with only 8.9 percent of those ages 26 to 55 (20). The 

reasons for heavy drinking rates in the military include 

a workplace culture that supports alcohol use and the 

increased availability of alcohol both in and around 

military bases (21). 

Peer Influences—People entering college or the workforce 

may be especially vulnerable to the influence of peers 

because of their need to make new friendships. And they 

may increase their drinking in order to gain acceptance by 

peers. Borsari and Carey (22) contend that peer influence 

is exerted directly (in the form of drink offers or urges to 

drink) and indirectly (by modeling perceived social norms). 

The phenomenon of perceived social norms—or the belief 

that “everyone” is drinking and drinking is acceptable— 

is one of the strongest correlates of drinking among young 

adults, and the subject of considerable research (15). Many 

college students think campus attitudes are much more permissive toward drinking than they really are and believe 

other students drink much more than they actually do 

(22–24). Recent research has shown that addressing these 

misperceptions can help reduce drinking (24). Then again, 

the relationship between drinking practices and peer groups 

may not be so clear. That is, a young person may opt to 

join a peer group based on that group’s drinking practices 

rather than change his or her drinking behavior to fit in 

with a particular peer group (25). 

4 NIAAA defines binge drinking as consuming about four drinks for men or three drinks for 

women in about 2 hours. 

5 In this study, 41.7 percent of college students vs. 37.1 percent of young adults reported drinking five or more drinks during the last 2 weeks (17). 

2

Marriage and Parenthood—Just as the move to adulthood 

leads to greater exploration of the world and experimentation with alcohol, assuming adult roles and responsibilities 

consistently curbs alcohol use. This reduction in drinking 

may be a result of limitations that adult roles place on 

social activities in general or may reflect a change in these 

young adults’ attitudes toward drinking. 

Young married women have the greatest decreases in drinking behavior, and married men, compared with men in 

all other categories of living arrangements (i.e., living 

with parents, in a dormitory, alone, or in other arrangements) 

have the fewest increases. The data also indicate that becoming 

engaged (i.e., making a commitment to a relationship) 

has a similar but less powerful effect on drinking compared 

with marriage, whereas becoming divorced leads to increased 

drinking behavior (19). 

Being a parent also is related to lower alcohol use for 

both men and women, although a large part of this effect 

may simply be a result of getting married. Most women 

who became pregnant eliminate their alcohol use, although 

most of their husbands do not (19). 

Young adults with serious alcohol problems—that is, 

who fit the diagnostic criteria for alcohol dependence— 

may not be as likely to choose stable roles such as marriage and parenthood, or these milestones may not affect 

their drinking behavior to the same extent that they affect 

people with less problematic drinking practices (26). 

Personality Characteristics—A number of personality traits 

have been associated with drinking greater amounts of 

alcohol and drinking more often, including impulsivity, 

risk-taking, and sensation-seeking—or the tendency to seek 

out new and exciting experiences (27). Sensation-seeking 

and impulsivity also have been linked to deviant behavior 

and nonconformity, both of which are predictors of heavy 

drinking and related problems among youth (28). 

Then there are other personality traits, such as a feeling 

of invincibility, that are common among young adults (27) 

and which can influence drinking. Many young people 

simply do not see themselves as vulnerable to any negative consequences that might occur because of drinking, 

such as having an accident or becoming dependent on 

alcohol. This optimistic bias makes young adults more 

SCREENING AND BRIEF INTERVENTION

Because young adults do not tend to identify themselves as having alcohol problems, proactive screening is recommended (1). Such screening is especially effective in locations where young adults are likely to seek treatment 

for alcohol-related injuries or illness. Among 18- to 24-year-olds, these settings may include hospital emergency 

departments, college counseling centers, or worksites. Screening also may be conducted as part of college-sponsored 

judicial review programs for alcohol-related infractions of campus policies. 

Traditional alcohol education programs, which provide information about the risks of alcohol use, take a variety 

of forms (e.g., individual sessions, lectures, multisession groups). However, these approaches have not resulted in 

reduced drinking, either in nonstudent or student populations (2,3). Given the variety of drinking patterns evident 

in the young adult population and the minimal effect of traditional alcohol education programs, more targeted, 

systematic approaches are needed to help young adults recognize and reduce their hazardous drinking. 

Studies show that young adults who are drinking in ways that are harmful or risky may respond better to brief, 

intensive interventions (4) than to traditional long-term treatments, which originally were designed for adults 

with longer histories of alcohol use and alcohol-related problems (5). Brief interventions typically consist of one 

to four sessions with a trained interventionist (e.g., physician, psychologist, counselor), with each session ranging 

from several minutes to up to an hour in length. These interventions are especially useful for people who do not 

have severe drinking problems, which require more intensive treatment (6). 

An updated guide is now available from NIAAA to help clinicians identify and help patients at risk for alcohol 

problems. For a free copy of Helping Patients Who Drink Too Much: A Clinician’s Guide, visit the NIAAA Web 

site (www.niaaa.nih.gov). 

References 

(1) Monti, P.M.; Tevyaw, T.O’L.; and Borsari, B. Drinking among young adults: Screening, brief interventions, and outcome. Alcohol Research & Health 

28(4):236–244, 2004/2005. (2) Hingson, R.; Berson, J.; and Dowley, K. Interventions to reduce college student drinking and related health and social problems. In: Plant, M.; Single, E.; and Stockwell, T.; eds. Alcohol: Minimising the Harm. London: Free Association Press, 1997. pp. 143–170. (3) Wells-Parker, 

E.; Bangert-Drowns, R.; McMillen, R.; and Williams, M. Final results from a meta-analysis of remedial interventions with drink/drive offenders. Addiction 

90:907–926, 1995. PMID 7663313 (4) Monti, P.M.; Colby, S.M.; and O’Leary, T.; eds. Adolescents, Alcohol and Substance Abuse: Reaching Teens Through 

Brief Interventions. New York: Guilford Press, 2001. (5) Monti, P.M.; Kadden, R.; Rohsenow, D.J.; et al. Treating Alcohol Dependence: A Coping Skills Training 

Guide, Second Edition. New York: Guilford Press, 2002. (6) Moyer, A.; Finney, J.W.; Swearingen, C.E.; and Vergun, P. Brief interventions for alcohol problems: 

A meta-analytic review of controlled investigations in treatment-seeking and non-treatment-seeking populations. Addiction 97:279–292, 2002. PMID: 11964101 

3

likely to take risks and perhaps to drink excessively, although 

risk-taking may not be a direct cause of drinking. That 

is, research shows that the decision to drink is influenced 

more by the perceived benefits of drinking than by the 

perceived risks (29). 

Negative moods, feelings of depression, and anxiety disorders also may influence alcohol use (15). Research has 

suggested that some people drink to relieve feelings of 

stress. In support of this, Cooper and colleagues (30) found 

that drinking to cope with negative feelings was a good 

predictor of heavy drinking as well as drinking problems 

in 19- to 25-year-olds. Again, though, research also shows 

that young adults are more likely to drink for “positive” 

or celebratory reasons than to drink to cope with negative feelings (31). 

Alcohol Expectancies—Positive alcohol expectancies, or 

the belief that drinking will lead to positive, pleasurable 

experiences, play a key role in the drinking behavior of 

young adults. What a person expects from drinking not 

only predicts when he or she will begin drinking but also 

how much he or she will drink throughout young adulthood. As people age through adolescence and into young 

adulthood, they increasingly expect benefits from drinking and become less convinced of the risks (32,33). 

Family Influences—During young adulthood parents 

may have less direct influence on their children’s drinking 

behavior, but they still play a major protective role (32). 

The example set by parents with their own drinking has 

been shown to affect their children’s drinking throughout 

their lifetime (34). Young people model their behavior 

after their parents’ patterns of consumption (including 

quantity and frequency), situations and contexts of use, 

attitudes regarding use, and expectancies. The family’s 

structure and aspects of the parent–child relationship 

(e.g., parenting style, attachment and bonding, nurturance, 

abuse or neglect, conflict, discipline, and monitoring) 

also have been linked to young people’s alcohol use (34). 

Genetics—Alcohol problems seem to “run” in some families (34). This family connection to alcoholism may be 

the result of a genetic link and/or may reflect the child’s 

modeling of drinking behavior. Siblings also can influence drinking through modeling and by providing access 

to alcohol (32). It’s unclear whether children of alcoholics 

have different drinking patterns and problems in young 

adulthood than those who do not have a family history 

of alcoholism (15). Research does show, however, that 

people with a family history of alcoholism are less likely 

than those with no family history to mature out of heavy 

drinking as they approach young adulthood (35). 

To better understand the role of genetics in alcohol abuse 

and alcoholism, scientists are looking at differences (or 

variants) in particular genes to see if they can be linked to 

drinking behavior. One study examined how gene variants 

linked to the regulation of serotonin—a key brain chemical involved in mood, appetite, emotion, and addiction, 

among other processes—influenced drinking behavior in 

college students. This study found that White students 

with a particular version of this gene engaged in binge 

drinking more often, drank to intoxication more often, 

and consumed more alcoholic drinks per drinking occasion than did students with other variants of the gene (36). 

Another study focused on the gene that helps to form 

an enzyme (aldehyde dehydrogenase or ALDH) that is 

important for breaking down alcohol in the body. This 

study reported that Asian American college students who 

carried a particular version of the ALDH gene which 

results in less efficient alcohol breakdown were less likely 

to be regular drinkers and engage in binge-drinking episodes; 

they also reported a lower number of maximum drinks 

consumed in a 24-hour period than Asian students with 

other ALDH variants (37). 

These studies are being complemented by large-scale 

efforts to identify genes that contribute to alcoholism. 

One of these projects, funded by the National Institute 

on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, is the Collaborative 

Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism (COGA). COGA 

researchers recently published reports of several genes 

associated with alcohol dependence in adults (38–40), 

and some of these findings already have been replicated 

by other investigators (41–43). The next step will be to 

determine whether these same genes are relevant to 

drinking behavior in adolescents and young adults. 

By identifying specific genes influencing alcohol abuse 

and alcoholism, scientists can begin to tease apart the 

complex interplay that exists between genetic and environmental influences. 

Tracking the Course 

Young adulthood is a time when many people establish 

lifelong patterns of alcohol use (or nonuse). Others take 

a different course, maybe drinking heavily in their late 

teens or young adult years, then maturing out of risky 

alcohol use as they begin to assume more adult roles. By 

identifying common tracks or trajectories of alcohol use 

and abuse across adolescence and young adulthood, 

researchers are hoping to better understand how problems with alcohol begin and how they are likely to 

develop over time in order to plan effective prevention 

and intervention programs (44–46). 

Studies of alcohol use trajectories have yielded several 

important findings. For example, although the majority 

of young adults report drinking some alcohol, anywhere 

4

from one-third (47) to two-thirds (48) report that they 

never drink heavily.

6 And most people tend to reduce their 

drinking by their mid-twenties as they start to acquire adult 

roles, such as becoming a spouse, parent, and worker. 

The age when people begin drinking (especially heavy 

drinking) has proven to be an especially good predictor 

of problems with alcohol later in life. Interviews of adults 

consistently confirm a strong association between an 

early initiation of drinking and later alcohol-related 

problems. People who binge drink also are at higher risk 

for later alcohol problems. And young adults who drink 

heavily are at particular risk for behavioral problems and 

may have trouble adjusting to adult roles (18). 

Maturing Out of Alcohol Use—About 21 percent of young 

adults met the diagnostic criteria for alcohol dependence 

or abuse in 2004 (3). Yet as they enter their mid-twenties, 

studies show that many of those same young adults will 

stop or moderate their drinking (35). 

Despite the fact that young adults’ alcohol use is in some 

sense “normal,” it still can be dangerous. Statistics show 

that illness and death among young adults primarily 

result from lifestyle choices and behaviors, including 

excessive alcohol use (49). Even one night of heavy drinking 

can have serious consequences that persist well beyond 

adolescence and young adulthood, such as alcohol-related 

car crashes, unintended pregnancies, and physical 

assaults leading to arrest or jail (50). 

6 The large variability cited here is attributed to differences in each study’s characteristics, 

such as the sample of young adults tested and the definition of heavy drinking used. 

Prevention and Intervention 

What researchers have learned about the different trajectories that drinkers follow as they progress through young 

adulthood has important implications for prevention. 

Studies have shown that (1) people follow a variety of 

pathways across the adolescent and young adult years, 

(2) alcohol use behaviors change differently for different 

people, and (3) factors that predict alcohol use patterns 

emerge and disappear at different ages. One approach to 

prevention simply will not fit every need. Recognizing 

the varied and ever-changing trajectories that alcohol use 

can take offers scientists a solid developmental foundation on which to build effective interventions (32). 

One way to prevent alcohol-related problems—among 

young people or the population as a whole—is to establish policies that reduce overall alcohol consumption 

rates or reduce the rates of high-risk drinking. Alcohol 

control policies influence the availability of alcohol, the 

social messages about drinking that are conveyed by 

advertising and other marketing approaches, and the 

enforcement of existing alcohol laws (51). 

Most alcohol control policies target either young people 

under the legal drinking age of 21 or the drinking behavior of the population as a whole, rather than specific subpopulations such as young adults. Nevertheless, some of 

these policies have a larger effect on young adult drinkers 

compared with the rest of the population—for example, 

measures that address drinking in bars and clubs, because 

young adults are more likely than other age groups to 

patronize these establishments. 

Prevention on College Campuses—In recent years, an 

increasing number of colleges have implemented policies 

to reduce alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems (14). Examples include establishing alcohol-free 

college residences and campuses, prohibiting self-service 

of alcohol at campus events, prohibiting beer kegs on 

campus, and banning sales or marketing of alcohol on 

campus. Though research on the success of these programs is limited, studies have shown that students living 

in substance-free residences are less likely to engage in 

heavy episodic or binge drinking (five or more drinks in 

one sitting for men, four or more for women), and 

underage students at colleges that ban alcohol are less 

likely to engage in heavy episodic drinking and more 

likely to abstain from alcohol (52,53). College alcohol 

policies are less likely to have an effect on students who 

live off campus than on, however. 

Prevention in the Military—Current strategies to prevent alcohol problems among military personnel are similar to strategies being used with other populations of 

drinkers, including instituting and enforcing policies that 

regulate alcohol availability and pricing, deglamorizing 

alcohol use, and promoting personal responsibility and 

overall good health (54). 

Prevention Among the General Population—Some of the 

principal strategies for influencing the drinking behavior 

of the general population are raising taxes on alcoholic 

beverages, limiting the number of alcohol establishments 

in a particular geographic area, training the staff of bars and 

stores to sell alcohol responsibly, and restricting alcohol 

marketing and advertising. 

Of these strategies, the effects of raising alcohol prices have 

been the most extensively studied. The most common 

method of raising prices is to increase Federal, State, or 

local taxes on alcoholic beverages. Studies show that 

underage youth are particularly sensitive to increased prices, 

decreasing their alcohol consumption by a greater amount 

than older drinkers (55). A few studies have looked at how 

alcohol prices affect drinking among college students and 

young adults (55). One study showed that college students 

faced with higher alcohol prices were less likely to transition 

from being abstainers to moderate drinkers and from 

moderate to heavy drinkers (56). Another study found 

5

that low sale prices were associated with higher rates of 

heavy episodic drinking among college students (57). 

Prevention of Drinking and Driving—Traffic crashes are 

the leading cause of death among teens, and more than 

half of drivers ages 21–24 who died in traffic crashes in 

2003 tested positive for alcohol (7). 

Raising the minimum legal drinking age (MLDA) to 21 

has produced significant reductions in traffic crashes among 

18- to 20-year-olds, and it appears to have had a spillover 

effect on the drinking behavior of 21- to 25-year-olds. 

One study found that college students who had been 

high school seniors in States when the MLDA was 18 

drank more while in college than their counterparts who 

had been high school seniors in States with an MLDA of 

21. High school graduates of the same age who were not 

attending college also drank more on average if they had 

been seniors in States with an MLDA of 18 (58). 

Another effective strategy to reduce drinking–driving is 

to lower the legal limit for allowable blood alcohol content (BAC) for drivers. In the past two decades, all States 

in the United States have adopted a BAC limit of 0.08 

percent for adult drivers and a BAC limit of zero, or 

slightly higher, for youth under age 21. These often are 

referred to as “zero tolerance” laws.7 

Studies have found that laws setting the legal allowable 

BAC at 0.08 percent have resulted in 5-percent to 8-percent 

reductions in alcohol-related fatal traffic crashes among 

all drivers (59–62). Laws setting the limit at 0.02 percent 

have led to a 19-percent reduction in drinking–driving 

and a 20-percent reduction in fatal traffic crashes among 

young drivers (63,64). 

Comprehensive Community Prevention Approaches— 

Perhaps the best way to reduce harmful drinking and 

alcohol-related problems in young adults is through 

comprehensive approaches that rely heavily on community 

action. Whether they are working, attending college, or in 

the military, young adults typically are part of a community. 

And young people’s usual sources of alcohol—retail outlets, 

restaurants, bars, and social settings such as parties—also 

operate within the environment of the community. 

To be effective, community prevention interventions require 

a mix of research-tested programs and policy strategies, 

along with strong enforcement of those laws. Three 

NIAAA-sponsored community trial projects have been 

extensively studied and are showing promise: The Saving 

Lives Project (65), the Community Trials Project (66), 

and Communities Mobilizing for Change on Alcohol 

7 Most laws use a 0.02-percent limit rather than an absolute zero limit to allow for small 

measurement errors in BAC test instruments and to avoid challenges from youth who claim 

they have taken medication with small amounts of alcohol. 

(67). These trials provide strong evidence for the positive 

effects of research-based local prevention efforts that take 

a comprehensive approach using a variety of strategies. 

Conclusion 

Research consistently shows that people tend to drink 

the heaviest in their late teens and early to mid-twenties. 

This high level of alcohol use comes at an age when people 

are moving away from parental restrictions but before they 

take on the full responsibilities of adult life. As young people 

begin to assume more adult roles—full-time employment, 

marriage, and parenthood—they often reduce their drinking. 

This reduction in alcohol use may be a result of the limitations that adult roles place on social activities or may 

reflect a change in young people’s attitudes toward drinking. 

Young adults who drink in ways that are especially 

harmful—those who fit the diagnostic criteria for alcohol 

dependence—may have predisposing personality characteristics and other factors that place them at greater risk 

for problems with alcohol. 

Prevention strategies that may be especially useful in curbing 

young adult alcohol use are those that focus on restricting 

the availability of alcohol. Such measures include raising 

the cost of alcohol through taxes, limiting when and 

where alcohol can be consumed, and enforcing policies 

that help to reduce problems such as drinking and driving. 

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7

R e s o u r c e s 

Source material for this Alcohol Alert originally appeared in Alcohol Research & Health, 

Volume 28, Number 4, 2004/2005. 

For more information on young adult drinking, see also: 

▲

NIAAA’s recently redesigned Web site, www.collegedrinkingprevention.org. 

The site targets college students, high school students, their parents, and 

school administrators. It features findings from the NIAAA 

Task Force on College Drinking and interactive tools, such 

as calculators for determining the cost of alcohol, the 

amount of calories in a drink, and for measuring blood 

alcohol concentration. The “Interactive Body” allows 

viewers to trace alcohol’s flow through the body and its 

effects on vital organs. E-cards also are offered, for mailing 

to friends or to someone who might need a “wakeup” call 

about the harmful effects of heavy drinking. 

▲

A Family History of Alcoholism: Are You at Risk?, a brochure 

with basic information for anyone who is concerned about a 

family history of alcoholism. It lists organizations that can help 

relatives or friends of alcoholics. Available from www.niaaa.nih.gov. 

Full text of this publication is available on NIAAA’s World Wide Web site at http://www.niaaa.nih.gov 

All material contained in the Alcohol Alert is in the public domain and may be used or reproduced 

without permission from NIAAA. Citation of the source is appreciated.


Copies of the Alcohol Alert are available free of charge from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism


Publications Distribution Center, P.O. Box 10686, Rockville, MD 20849–0686.


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