Binge drinking in later life: comparing young-old and old-old social drinkers.
Although widespread binge drinking has been documented in younger groups, few studies have examined this behavior among older individuals. We assessed differences in bingeing between young-old (n = 189) and old-old (n = 137) social drinkers. Of those who reported drinking, no significant age o rgender differences were uncovered in alcohol consumption (M = 6.6, SD = 9.4) or degree of alcohol-related problems (M = 12.2, SD = 3.1). Logistic regression analysis showed that old-old adults were 15.7 times less likely to binge drink than the young-old; older women overall were 19.7 times less likely to binge relative to older men. Also, correlations were more diverse among old-old adults. The need for better understanding of bingeing among elders is discussed.
Wiscott
Richard
R
Gerontology Program, Shippensburg University, Pennsylvania 17257, USA. rawisc@wharf.ship.edu
Kopera-Frye
Karen
K
Begovic
Ana
A
D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology