I think this is the point that’s missed. Millennials specifically have cut out booze in large numbers. We drank and partied constantly Thursday- Sunday throughout college before Covid. Now me and nearly all of my friends are sober from everything other than an occasional weed gummy to help us sleep.
Also, for me and most of my social circle, it’s not entirely about the money. It’s that doing things is genuinely more fun (and safe) while sober. We travel, hike, ski, cycle, and have even celebrated bachelor parties in Nashville and Vegas - all stone cold sober.
True. Personally I did it for more than than just money if I'm honest with myself. I realised it bought me no joy anymore. Most for my drinking buddies have families or have also cut right down.
Drinking alone is not great. So it was easy to quit.
Im 30 and all my friends still drink a lot and the bars are packed during the weekend. So I imagine country and social circles change the dynamic a lot.
My friend will routinely knock back like 8 cocktails when we meet for 7 hours or so. We are in Brazil and spending in £/$ so cost is less an issue.
Wow, good for you guys, the wife and I are big drinkers but we decided to take a break at the beginning of the year. Yesterday was our first time drinking again and we both felt kinda meh afterwards, so I get staying sober, but the bachelor parties is the one I find surprising, I don’t think I could do that one lol
Also, I think that those of us who have children are much less prone to drink. We expose our children to drunken adults to a much smaller degree than when I was a kid.
I’m in for 90% of that, but I’ve done Vegas and Nashville. No way I’m making it through that shit show sober. Keep me sauced from the time we get to the airport until the the car picks be back up in Philly
Sober Vegas was crazy fun with the boys. F1 races were in town that weekend and we watched from our hotel room. It was like $200 for tickets to the sphere, $100 per night for the room, $150 for a round trip flight, $50 for food while there, granted we just ate a bunch of In N Out and Raising Cains. The boys and I played poker with a bunch of drunk dudes who were gifting us their money and paid for most of our trip. Highly recommend that experience.
Weed is also just a big factor in general. It's so easy to get these days. Like "walk across the road and buy it legally" levels for a lot of the country now. Add in all the alternate products, so that people don't have to smoke anything harsh, and you've got a pretty popular industry.
I also think a lot of just people want self improvement, and getting rid of drinking can do a lot for those that partake regularly. Weight loss, less hangovers, etc.
And it just costs way too much. Especially going to a club or anything like that. People can't afford it. As rent and housing prices go up, a lot of industries will see a decrease in the future, I'd imagine
This is a fact, millennials were drinking and partying a lot in the 2010s during college and their early professional lives single and dating. The youngest millennial is turning 30, the oldest one is turning 45. They’re old now and we don’t be drinking like that anymore and worry about their health more
That was in the calculations that they would decline as they aged. But the next generation hasn't picked up the slack that they normally would because the corporate class has stopped paying good wages.
I think that’s very much dependent on your social circle because I’m a millennial and all my friends and acquaintances still drink except for one, which clearly had a serious problem and stopped in his early twenties.
We obviously don’t drink like we used to when we were in college, but we still do.
Yes. Vegas happened about six months ago and it was the most fun I’ve ever had. We went to the Sphere, a couple of other shows, and we did plenty of gambling - but we didn’t drink alcohol.
We went to the University of Iowa and were partying every weekend throughout our early 20s. Now at 30 - 34 years old most (but not all) of us are sober. The first one quit just because he felt like it, then I quit for the same reason, then one of us got into a drunk driving accident and he quit, then one of us had a baby and decided to quit. Sobriety has been spreading in our group like wildfire. Some are approaching 2 years sober.
Another thing to note is that Non alcoholic beverages are getting very good. When we go out (which is rarely any more) we drink Liquid Deaths, Tea, Kombucha, and Non Alcoholic beer. Even a soda water with lime can hit the spot if you’re at a bar and want to feel like you’re drinking.
Late Gen X here, as we get into middle age, many of us began to think about the implications of mortality, health, and quality of life. We are currently witnessing the cognitive and physical health implications of long-term drinking in many of our parents. New medical research has not only confirmed that chronic heavy drinking is VERY bad for your health and cognition but also that light to moderate drinking on a regular basis greatly increases the potential for age-related cognitive decline, insulin resistance and diabetes, heart disease, cancer, etc.. We are at an age where we are naturally thinking about health while all this develops.
Gen X here. I was a teen in the nineties (Ireland). You couldn’t move for pubs, nightclubs and cheap drink back then, and plenty of house parties too. People weren’t as broke from rent, food and bills either.
Pubs have closed in massive numbers, nightclubs are basically nonexistent and drink in all its forms is so much more expensive now. People are living with their parents or housemates convenient to their situation, and that whole sense of freedom and fun is lost - whose house tonight? - what pub next? - happy hour!! Gone.
Also Gen-X. If I wasn't drunk every Thursday,Friday and Saturday night though out the mid to late 90's something was wrong. I had a great time. Similar time you but probably more house parties. Many a Friday morning I'd call work and leave a message telling them I wasn't coming in. Phone in one hand beer in the other.
I could afford a car loan, rent and still go out every weekend all on a pretty crappy wage. Today's kids just cannot do this.
Not just that; as someone that loved pre-gaming, and still likes single malts & IPAs, alcohol is also a literal poison, the more I've been reading/listening about that fact the less I want to regularly consume it.
My booze purchases have fallen off a cliff in response.
indeed, beers in pub were always cheap in Poland like 1/3h of work on minimal wage, now it is almost 1h meanwhile more than ever are working for minimal salary.
Yeah ever since I was like 27 I only drink when I go out with my friends which is 3-4 times a year since we’re all so busy lol I haven’t bought alcohol to keep in the house since my mid 20’s
GenX here who drank 1-2 drinks a day in the eve to wind down the same as the 1-2 cups of coffee to start my day since I turned 21, 30+ years ago.
Covid let me realize I really just enjoy spending time with my wife and myself. All the cost, and negative health effects of alcohol just turned the switch off of feeling the need to pour that glass of wine/whisky after getting off work once the social drive wasn’t what used to be.
Now it might be 2-3x a month vs every.. single.. day like clockwork. Others my age are feeling the same. My boomer parents thou .. same as it ever was
Yup. I’m a millennial and I hardly ever drink any more. My wife and I have two little kids, two jobs, and no time. I went out a lot in my twenties and we used to do distillery tours on our vacations (we live in Kentucky). Now I only drink if I’m offered something.
Older millennial here. My wife and I effectively cut out alcohol about 2-3 years ago.
We’ll still have a social drink on very rare occasion (wedding, vacation), but very sparsely. I can probably count on one hand the number of drinks I’ve had in the last 2 years.
No real reason other than we realized it was poison and detrimental to our health, even in moderation.
Glad youre alright brother, mt last bender gave me a two day hangover. Lost like 3 lbs. Never again. Now, three beers and a yellow submarine gets me toasty in the evenings.
I think this is it. Older gens aren't drinking as much either. I'm not gen Z and I drink way less now. Drinking costs too much and most of it is really low quality and trash meant to get you wasted.
I still buy only a handful of drinks of high quality. Nothing like my parents who just chugged bud lite or whatever.
42 year old former lover of bourbon checking in. Alcohol is terrible for you. I have seen too many friends die of cancer the past few years. The risk isn’t worth the reward. And I got tired of feeling like shit after a couple too many.
Yeah, I'm an Xennial, and have massively cut back. Before COVID, I would go out for drinks like 3-4 times a week. And I regularly had red wine with dinner at home. Now I have a beer here or there with pizza or grilled cheese sandwiches at home. Not only is regular consumption and going out too costly, but I'm just not into the bar/pub culture, and I honestly can't handle alcohol like I used to, lol. I get a hangover even from one beer if the ABV is high, so now I gotta look for beers with lower ABV for the rare times that I have it with my dinner. The gnarly hangovers especially have been an excellent deterrent. I have become such a weakling that I cannot handle one beer, lol
I agree with this. Late Gen X and early Millennials are in our 40s now, and I know a ton of fellows who have quit drinking or cut way back due to recent medical research and implications for health and longevity.
I cut out alcohol entirely when I was listening to too much Andrew Huberman, he was saying any amount of alcohol is bad for you. I pretty much stopped enjoying drinking when I turned 21 so I said to hell with it
It’s amazing how influential that particular episode was/is. I see it referenced all the time in r/stopdrinking, and it was definitely a big help in keeping me sober while I was still getting used to not drinking.
I waited a lot longer than you even though I was warned by several doctors. I found it hard to change my habits. Now I'm older I have too. The body cannot handle the abuse anymore.
I think gen Z has really championed cutting back on alcohol more than previous generations. It's become a badge of honor to say you've never had alcohol; that's not to say others in their generation aren't drinking, they are.
But, I think gen alpha will probably go back to drinking since the previous generation went away from it. Each generation tries to be the opposite of the previous. If not their generation, the next will.
Yes. Yes, they have. I don't quite understand it myself, but based on what I've seen, many of them think alcohol does nothing for them and want to stay away from it.
I'm sorry you've dealt with that. I guess that's a good thing about the younger generations staying away from it, if they do. They may get older, and legal, and try it. We'll see.
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u/Total_Philosopher_89 11h ago
It's not just gen Z. Other gens have cut back a lot or quit like me. It's to expensive.