Are we getting healthier or just spending more time online instead of drinking?
Older drinkers are dying of old age. Younger people just arenât drinking much any more, if at all.
I remember reading once that overall sales volume is driven by heavy drinkers, daily consumption.
Why are younger people not drinking as much as previous generations?
There seems to be more of a fitness culture among younger people. They follow fitness influencers on exercise, diet and whatnot. Itâs more socially acceptable not to drink or smoke. Plus they seem to socialise more online rather than in bars.
Lightweights⌠
Someone mentioned also covid shutdown may have accelerated a shift away from physical socialization.
The answer might be a very ugly one: other drugs. Itâs kind of hard to drink, eat some pills and inject something in the same day.
Do you have any evidence to back that up? Itâs the first Iâve heard of it so Iâm assuming you just made it up.
It may account for a few people not drinking I suppose but doesnât explain the massive trend against alcohol.
People are aware of the health risks of alcohol much more too.
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Anecdote: my friends and acquaintances. Some people takes pride in telling âno beer, I only do X or Yâ. I have the impression that recreational drug users tend to do this.
Research: itâs called substitution (smoking more weed, drinking less) or complementarity (smoking more weed and drinking more)
Cannabis as a substitute for alcohol and other drugs
Substitution and Complementarity in the Consumption of Alcohol, Cannabis, and Opium the fun thing is that substitution or complementarity depend on relative prices among them.
Back to anecdotes, there are cultural scenes out there where uppers and psychedelics are more popular than alcohol. Of course, still a lot people drinking but talks about not mixing are common place. Also, not uncommon to be high on the weekend or music festival and then nothing in the following weeks, not even alcohol, truly recreational.
Are your friends in their late teens to late twenties, or older?
Maybe your definition of young is not as young as you think it is.
My eldest is at Uni and he just has not much interest in alcohol and neither do his peers.
Heâs not teetotal and does drink - but not very much, at home or when out.
Case in point, I bought him a pack of three bottles of a beer I saw him drink on holiday.
Three months later, three bottles are still in the fridge.
When I was younger, our social life revolved around the pub (or many).
This is exactly the same as our son who is mid twenties now. Even when he was at uni there wasnât the same âpubâ culture I remember from my uni days. Young people these days just donât seem to be interested in drinking or other recreational drugs yet they still have pretty good social lives.
40s. After the children have grown up, some are back to the recreational stuff.
Iâve never been a pub/bar guy, neither people I know. At home in a decent way, wild party at home, while camping, at the business of friends (car garage, metal shop, restaurant), at public grills (feuerstellen) here in CH.
The long years of university needs a special mention, the drinking place was the university. The price difference between a couple 24 pack of beers at discount shops and going to a pub is quite high.
Young at heart maybe?
Pubs are definitely a UK thing (And the Antipodes too).
Because their whole life is online, they donât have much sex either
Cultural diversity: the main motivation to move out from parentâs home. A few 24 packs in the fridge, invite friends home.