A lifetime of drinking - how much we drink as we age

An analysis of nine major studies of drinking habits in the United Kingdom published in the journal BMC Medicine has produced the graph above showing life time drinking habits. The researchers found that found that for men, mean consumption rose sharply during adolescence, peaked at around 25 years at 20 units per week, and then declined and plateaued during mid-life, before declining from around 60 years. A similar trajectory was seen for women, but with lower overall consumption (peak of around 7 to 8 units per week). 

Frequent drinking (daily or most days of the week) became more common during mid to older age, most notably among men, reaching above 50% of men.