BACKGROUND: Excessive alcohol consumption is responsible for approximately 4,300 deaths among people aged <21 years each year, and underage drinking cost the U.S. $24.3 billion in 2010.
METHODS: To examine national trends in the prevalence of current drinking and binge drinking among U.S. high school students, CDC analyzed data from the 1991–2015 national Youth Risk Behavior Surveys (YRBS). Data were also analyzed from the 2015 YRBS on the usual source of alcohol consumed and the largest number of drinks consumed in a row by binge drinkers.
RESULTS: The overall prevalence of current drinking among high school students declined significantly from 50.8% in 1991 to 44.7% in 2007, then further significantly declined to 32.8% in 2015. The prevalence of binge drinking increased from 31.3% in 1991 to 31.5% in 1999, then significantly declined to 17.7% in 2015. Most (57.8%) high school students who drank were also binge drinkers, and in 2015, 43.8% of binge drinkers consumed ≥8 drinks in a row on at least one occasion. Binge drinkers were three times more likely to give someone money to purchase alcohol (30.7%) than current drinkers who did not binge drink (8.8%).
CONCLUSIONS: Despite progress, current and binge drinking are common among high school students, and many students who binge drink do so at high intensity. Widespread use of evidence-based population-level strategies for preventing excessive drinking (e.g., increasing alcohol taxes, regulating alcohol outlet density, and commercial host liability laws) could help reduce underage drinking and related harms.