CDC Reports Teen Binge Drinking Rates Decline to Historic Lows

Source: Distilled Spirits Council

June 9, 2016

A major Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) survey released today reported that underage and binge drinking rates among high school students are at their lowest levels since the survey’s inception in 1991.

The 2015 National Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS), released every two years by the CDC, also showed that underage and binge drinking has consistently declined at a statistically significant rate over the past decade. 

“This long-term decline in underage and binge drinking is extremely encouraging,” said Distilled Spirits Council President & CEO Kraig R. Naasz.  “Public-private partnerships, including those sponsored by the distilled spirits sector, are clearly working and we must continue these collective efforts in order to keep the momentum moving forward.”

More than 15,000 U.S. high school students participated in the 2015 National Youth Risk Behavior Survey, which is one of three surveys sponsored by the Department of Health and Human Services that track data on substance abuse among youth nationally.