• HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
Wednesday, June 18, 2025
BIOENGINEER.ORG
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
No Result
View All Result
Bioengineer.org
No Result
View All Result
Home NEWS Science News Health

Higher alcohol content beer popularity growing, as overall beer consumption down

Bioengineer by Bioengineer
June 10, 2021
in Health
Reading Time: 4 mins read
0
ADVERTISEMENT
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedinShare on RedditShare on Telegram

IMAGE

Credit: Schiff, et al, Substance Use & Misuse, 2021.

PITTSBURGH, June 10, 2021 – Americans are consuming more craft beer with higher alcohol content but are drinking less beer by volume, according to a new analysis led by epidemiologists at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health.

The study, published online and in a coming issue of the journal Substance Use & Misuse, looked at beer purchased in stores between 2004 and 2014. This is the first study to examine trends not only in the volume of beer purchased, but also the “beer specific” alcohol content.

“With the rise in popularity of craft breweries and the acquisition of such breweries by large-scale industry and investment companies, we’ve seen steady growth in consumption of higher alcohol content beer,” said senior author Anthony Fabio, Ph.D., M.P.H., associate professor of epidemiology at Pitt Public Health. “It is important that public health messaging include an emphasis on knowing the alcohol content of beer, not just the number of beers consumed, to ensure healthy alcohol consumption.”

The research team obtained data from the 2004-2014 Nielsen Consumer Panel, which is an annual survey of about 35,000 to 60,000 American households with information on purchasing. Researchers then meticulously matched the types of beer purchased with their alcohol content, grouping beers with 4.5% or less alcohol as “lower alcohol content” beers; with 4.5-5% alcohol as “regular” and beers with greater than 5% as “higher alcohol content.”

They found that in 2004, 9.6% of household beer consumed was of higher alcohol content; in 2014, that grew to 21.6%. Meanwhile, the number of 12-ounce beers each household purchased annually decreased from 169.4 in 2004 to 150.8 in 2014.

“We were pleasantly surprised to learn that–at least in terms of household beer consumption–Americans seem to be self-regulating. Households are buying higher alcohol content beer, but drinking less beer overall,” said lead author Mary Schiff, M.P.H., graduate student in Pitt Public Health’s Department of Epidemiology.

Federal health authorities have long addressed the importance of understanding the amount of alcohol in a “standard drink.” Different types of beer have very different amounts of alcohol content, and the amount of liquid in a glass, can or bottle does not tell how much alcohol is actually in a drink.

“That’s why it’s important to know how many standard drinks you consume,” Schiff said. “In the U.S., one ‘standard’ drink contains roughly 14 grams of pure alcohol, which is found in 12 ounces of regular, 5% alcohol beer. With the introduction of these higher alcohol content beers into the marketplace, this rule of thumb no longer holds as beers can be 8% or more alcohol. So, four bottles of regular beer equals four drinks, but four bottles of an India Pale Ale could be six-and-a-half regular beers.”

The research team couldn’t determine in this study if their findings translate to bars and restaurants. It’s possible that people are able to look at labels and determine the alcohol content of beer they purchase from the store or distributor, but that may be more difficult to do when the beer is served in a pint glass.

Consumption of higher-alcohol content beer grew notably starting in 2011, while lower-alcohol content beer consumption declined. This was when large-scale acquisition of craft breweries ramped up. For example, only 16 such acquisitions occurred in the 21 years from 1988 to 2010, yet in a quarter of that time, 20 acquisitions occurred between 2010 and 2014.

“During that time, Americans also shifted toward wine and spirits, and may have been drinking less beer for that reason,” said Fabio. “We didn’t examine purchases of alcoholic beverages other than beer, but national reports show steady increases in wine consumption.”

Finally, the research team found that more beer consumption was associated with being white, lower-income and of lower educational attainment, all consistent with previous studies.

###

Additional authors on this research are Dara Mendez, Ph.D., M.P.H., Tiffany L. Gary-Webb, Ph.D., M.H.S., and J. Jeffrey Inman, Ph.D., M.B.A., all of Pitt.

This research was funded in part by National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute grant T32 HL083825.

About the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health

The University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health, founded in 1948 and now one of the top-ranked schools of public health in the United States, conducts research on public health and medical care that improves the lives of millions of people around the world. Pitt Public Health is a leader in devising new methods to prevent and treat cardiovascular diseases, HIV/AIDS, cancer and other important public health problems. For more information about Pitt Public Health, visit the school’s Web site at http://www.publichealth.pitt.edu.

http://www.upmc.com/media

Contact: Allison Hydzik

Office: 412-647-9975

Mobile: 412-559-2431

E-mail: [email protected]

Contact: Anastasia Gorelova

Mobile: 412-491-9411

E-mail: [email protected]

Media Contact
Allison Hydzik
[email protected]

Related Journal Article

http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10826084.2021.1928208

Tags: AddictionAlcoholEpidemiologyLiverMedicine/HealthPerception/AwarenessPublic HealthSocial/Behavioral ScienceToxicology
Share14Tweet9Share2ShareShareShare2

Related Posts

blank

Measuring Vinyl Acetate Exposure from Consumer Products

June 18, 2025
Heat Shock Proteins Signal Neuron-Glia Aging Talk

Heat Shock Proteins Signal Neuron-Glia Aging Talk

June 18, 2025

Personalized Deep Brain Stimulation Boosts Parkinson’s Gait

June 18, 2025

SANA Boosts Creatine Thermogenesis, Drives Weight Loss

June 17, 2025
Please login to join discussion

POPULAR NEWS

  • Green brake lights in the front could reduce accidents

    Study from TU Graz Reveals Front Brake Lights Could Drastically Diminish Road Accident Rates

    161 shares
    Share 64 Tweet 40
  • New Study Uncovers Unexpected Side Effects of High-Dose Radiation Therapy

    76 shares
    Share 30 Tweet 19
  • Pancreatic Cancer Vaccines Eradicate Disease in Preclinical Studies

    71 shares
    Share 28 Tweet 18
  • How Scientists Unraveled the Mystery Behind the Gigantic Size of Extinct Ground Sloths—and What Led to Their Demise

    65 shares
    Share 26 Tweet 16

About

We bring you the latest biotechnology news from best research centers and universities around the world. Check our website.

Follow us

Recent News

Breakthrough: CAR T-Cell Therapy Successfully Treats Severe Polyneuritis

How Tiny Particles Become Toxic Within Plants

Green Chemistry Breakthrough: Creating Fluorine Complexes from Common Fluoride Salts

  • Contact Us

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Homepages
    • Home Page 1
    • Home Page 2
  • News
  • National
  • Business
  • Health
  • Lifestyle
  • Science

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.