Vital Signs: Binge Drinking Prevalence, Frequency, and Intensity
Among Adults — United States, 2010 On January 10, 2012, this
report was posted as an MMWR Early Release on the MMWR website
(http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr). Background: Binge drinking accounts
for more than half of the estimated 80,000 average annual deaths
and three quarters of $223.5 billion in economic costs resulting
from excessive alcohol consumption in the United States.
Methods: CDC analyzed data collected in 2010 on the prevalence
of binge drinking (defined as four or more drinks for women and
five or more drinks for men on an occasion during the past 30
days) among U.S. adults aged ≥18 years in 48 states and the
District of Columbia; and on the frequency (average number of
episodes per month) and intensity (average largest number of
drinks consumed on occasion) among binge drinkers. Results: The
overall prevalence of binge drinking was 17.1%. Among binge
drinkers, the frequency of binge drinking was 4.4 episodes per
month, and the intensity w