Longitudinal changes in alcohol use across 20 years of adulthood: a U.S. National daily diary study

Objectives: While alcohol consumption typically declines with age, drinking trajectories may vary across indicators and individual characteristics. The current study uses daily diary methodology to describe longitudinal changes in alcohol consumption across up to 20 years. Method: We used three waves of 8-day diary surveys from the National Study of Daily Experiences. Participants (N = 1379; M_age = 49.8 years) completed 2+ waves of telephone interviews at 10-year intervals. Results: Multilevel regression analyses revealed declines in drinking quantity across time (b = −0.26; SE = 0.05; p < 0.001), while drinking frequency, at-risk drinking frequency (>1/>2 drinks per day for females/males), and likelihood of non-drinking did not change. Older age was associated with drinking more frequently overall (b = 0.003; SE = 0.001; p < 0.001), greater increases in likelihood of non-drinking over time (b = 0.01; SE = 0.01; p = 0.007), and stronger longitudinal declines in drinking frequency (b = −0.002; SE = 0.001; p = 0.001) and at-risk drinking frequency (b= −0.002; SE = 0.001; p < 0.001). Greater educational attainment was associated with increasing drinking frequency (b = 0.008; SE = 0.004; p = 0.021), while male sex predicted stronger declines in drinking quantity over time (b = −0.27; SE = 0.10; p = 0.006). Conclusion: Changes in alcohol consumption over time vary across drinking indicators and sociodemographic characteristics. Future research should examine why older adults reduce their drinking, as these motivators may inform alcohol reduction strategies.