UK’s late mid-lifers most likely to drink daily – Canadean

On any given day at least three in10 people in the UK consume alcohol with an established trend of ‘late mid-lifers and seniors’ (those aged 55 and over) being the most likely to drink one to two alcoholic beverages every day, reveals a recent survey from Canadean Consumer.

Its research shows that UK consumers are not just turning to alcohol on big nights out. Indeed, they could be unwittingly drinking more than those who binge once or twice a week.?

Although much attention has been focused on the UK’s weekend binge-drinking culture, a considerable number of consumers there appear to prefer a smaller volume of alcohol on a more regular basis.

Canadean Consumer’s research indicates that in addition to big nights out alcohol is consumed for an array of reasons such as relaxing and dealing with everyday stresses. ??

“It would appear that those in their late 40s and 50s are particularly likely to drink a relatively small amount of alcohol on a daily basis,” explains Michael Hughes, Research Manager at Canadean Consumer, “Although some consumers associate moderated alcohol consumption with having certain health benefits, it’s important that these older consumers who’re turning to alcohol either to relax or to relieve stress are not unwittingly increasing the risk of developing health problems such as hypertension by over-consuming during the course of a week.”?

Although alcohol consumption during the week is less common on a Monday, one in five people still have one to two drinks on that day (rising to 30 per cent of those aged 55 and over).

By Thursday, this has risen to 25 per cent of the population (and 31 per cent of those aged 55 and over).
Michael Hughes comments, “These figures show that a significant proportion of society does not wait until the end of the week before treating themselves to a drink”.??

From a manufacturer perspective, the trend towards more frequent, moderated drinking means that they should have products in their portfolio positioned around a ‘less of the best’ ethos – encouraging consumers to trade-up to more premium varieties to make the experience an enjoyable one, states Canadean.

It also highlights an opportunity to further promote the importance of responsible drinking, raising awareness of the long-term health implications associated with regularly exceeding daily recommended allowances and making consumers aware that although drinking can make consumers feel less stressed they might still be compromising their health.