近年来，老年人酗酒现象日益增多，成为一个值得关注的公共健康问题。与过去普遍认为酗酒主要发生在年轻人群体中不同，最新的研究表明，60岁以上人群的酗酒率正在上升，这可能与老年人对酒精的看法变化、身体机能下降以及药物相互作用等因素有关。酗酒对老年人的健康危害更大，更容易导致跌倒、受伤、认知功能下降等问题，也可能加重既有疾病。文章指出，随着老年人口的不断增加，酗酒问题可能会对医疗系统造成更大的负担。文章还提供了评估老年人饮酒习惯的工具和资源，旨在帮助人们识别和应对酗酒问题，促进老年人的健康和福祉。

🍻**老年人酗酒率上升趋势明显：**根据美国国家药物滥用和精神健康调查，60至64岁人群中，最近一个月有20%的人存在酗酒行为，65岁以上人群的酗酒率为12%，且在过去十年中呈上升趋势。与之形成对比的是，18至25岁年轻人的酗酒率却在下降。这种趋势的变化可能与老年人对酒精的看法变化有关，他们可能认为酒精对健康的影响不如年轻人重视，或者认为适量饮酒可以帮助缓解孤独感或改善社交。此外，随着年龄增长，老年人社交圈子缩小，退休后生活较为单调，饮酒可能成为他们寻求慰藉和放松的一种方式。

🍷**老年人对酒精的敏感性更高：**随着年龄的增长，人体各项机能逐渐衰退，包括水分代谢、药物代谢等。老年人更容易受到酒精的影响，饮酒后更容易出现头晕、呕吐、平衡障碍等症状。此外，老年人身体对酒精的代谢能力下降，导致酒精在体内的停留时间更长，更容易引起酒精中毒。因此，即使是少量饮酒，对老年人来说也可能带来更大的健康风险。此外，老年人更容易发生跌倒，而饮酒会加剧跌倒的风险，并且饮酒后跌倒造成的损伤也往往更加严重。美国疾病控制与预防中心估计，近40%的跌倒事故与饮酒有关，并且至少存在0.10%的血酒精浓度。

🥃**老年人酗酒的危害更大：**长期酗酒会增加老年人患酒精使用障碍、某些癌症、心脏病和精神健康障碍的风险。此外，老年人往往需要服用多种药物，包括治疗睡眠障碍、高血压、糖尿病等疾病的药物，而这些药物与酒精混合使用可能会产生危险的副作用，甚至危及生命。因此，老年人需要更加谨慎地对待饮酒，避免过量饮酒，并注意药物与酒精的相互作用。一些研究表明，老年饮酒者在某些任务上的能力下降幅度大于年轻饮酒者，例如驾驶能力、反应时间、记忆力和平衡能力等。

🍸**评估老年人饮酒习惯的工具：**由于老年人酗酒的症状可能不易察觉，例如，他们可能退休在家，独居生活，社交减少，因此他们的饮酒行为对工作或学习的影响可能不那么明显。为了帮助评估老年人的饮酒习惯，可以参考“简版密歇根酒精筛查测试—老年版”（SMAST-G），该测试包括一些问题，例如：“与他人交谈时，您是否低估了自己饮酒的量？”、“喝了几杯酒后，您是否有时没有进食或能够跳过一顿饭，因为您没有感到饥饿？”、“喝几杯酒是否可以帮助减少您的颤抖或震颤？”、“酒精是否有时让您难以记住当天或夜晚的部分内容？”、“医生或护士是否曾经说过他们担心或担心您的饮酒？”、“您是否曾经制定过管理饮酒的规则？”、“当您感到孤独时，喝酒是否有所帮助？”这些问题可以帮助人们了解老年人的饮酒行为，并及时采取干预措施。

🍺**医疗系统负担加重：**随着老年人口的不断增加，未来40年，老年人口数量将翻番。即使老年人酗酒的比例保持不变，老年人酗酒的人数也会迅速增长，这将对医疗系统造成更大的负担。老年人酗酒导致的疾病和意外伤害需要大量的医疗资源，包括住院治疗、康复治疗、药物治疗等，这将增加医疗成本，加重医疗系统的压力。因此，预防和控制老年人酗酒问题，不仅有利于老年人的健康和福祉，也有助于减轻医疗系统的负担，促进社会和谐稳定。

Binge drinking is prevalent across generations, but the dangerous habit is growing among one age group in particular. Long associated with college students, binge drinking, defined as having four or more drinks within two hours at least five times per month for women (five drinks for men) is on the rise among older adults. According to The National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 20% of adults aged 60 to 64, reported binge drinking in the last month. For those older than 65, the prevalence of binge drinking is 12%—a rate that has been increasing over the last decade, while binge drinking rates among young adults 18 to 25 have been going down.What’s behind the concerning trend? It may be changing views on alcohol. “Older adults who drink do so more frequently than people under 65,” says George F. Koob, PhD, director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, adding that the data shows a larger percentage of those 65 and older drink 20 or more days a month compared to those 18 to 64. Today’s young adults are increasingly embracing sobriety. One Gallup survey found that 65% of 18 to 34-year-olds say alcohol is bad for your health compared to 39% of those 55 and older. While the percentage of older adults who are binge drinkers has increased slightly, the growing number of older adults who are in this age group will double in the next 40 years. “As a result, even if the percentage of older adults who binge remained the same, the sheer number of older adult binge drinkers would continue to grow rapidly, potentially placing an increasing burden on our healthcare system,” Koob says. What are the dangers of binge drinking for older adults? For older adults, alcohol’s effects are intensified. The body’s ability to retain water decreases with age, so older adults feel the effects of alcohol faster. Older adults also metabolize alcohol differently, Koob says. “The body changes as we age and these changes render us more susceptible to some of the harms that stem from alcohol use,” Koob says. “Older drinkers show bigger impairments than younger drinkers on some tasks, including driving performance, reaction time, memory, and balance.” Moreover, older adults are more likely to struggle with balance and experience falls even without alcohol (Falling is the leading cause of injury for those 65 and older). “Studies suggest the injuries sustained from falls while intoxicated tend to be more severe than injuries from falls that do not involve alcohol,” Koob says. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that nearly 40% of falls involve alcohol and at least a blood alcohol concentration of 0.10%. Older adults are also more likely to be on several medications, including sleep medications and other drugs, which may be dangerous when taken in combination with alcohol. Long term binge drinking can increase the risk of alcohol use disorder, certain cancers, heart disease, and mental health disorders. Questions to help assess your alcohol habits Symptoms of binge drinking can be hard to decipher, especially for older adults. “Older drinkers might be retired, live alone, and socialize less. As a result, their drinking might have less of an impact on things like work attendance or school performance,” he says. The Short Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test–Geriatric Version (SMAST-G) is one survey to help assess older adults’ drinking habits. Here are some of the questions:When talking with others, do you ever underestimate how much you drink?After a few drinks, have you sometimes not eaten or been able to skip a meal because you didn’t feel hungry?Does having a few drinks help decrease your shakiness or tremors?Does alcohol sometimes make it hard for you to remember parts of the day or night?Has a doctor or nurse ever said they were worried or concerned about your drinking?Have you ever made rules to manage your drinking?When you feel lonely, does having a drink help?For more education on how to assess your—or a family member’s—drinking habits, visit the NIAAA Healthcare Professional’s Core Resource on Alcohol.