Alcohol is an undeniable part of Australian culture, dating back to colonisation. It’s the thing we do to celebrate, to mourn, to lubricate social situations, to take the edge off, to wind down after a long day.
In more recent times, the rose-coloured glasses with which we’ve long viewed alcohol are starting to slip.
In 2019, daily drinking rates were at the lowest level seen since 1991, and ‘sober curiosity’, particularly among younger generations, is taking off.
Changing attitudes
Two in three Australians believe that our country has a problem with alcohol.
The 2023 report showed that 30% of Australians are concerned about the alcohol use of someone they know, such as a family member or friend, while 80% of Australians are concerned about alcohol-related harm in our communities.
Another study from 2023 highlights that Australians have come to view alcohol as a more dangerous substance in recent years.
These concerns are present across all age groups and drinking behaviours, which suggests a broad-based shift in our attitudes on alcohol.
Sober curiosity in young people
Changing perceptions about alcohol may be driving reduced alcohol consumption.
While Australians of all ages are concerned about alcohol harms, the decline in alcohol consumption in Australia over the past two decades can be largely attributed to major declines in drinking among teens and young adults.
In 2023, 400,000 Aussies went alcohol-free – mostly millennials.
The 2019 National Drug Strategy Household Survey found that the proportion of people in their 20s abstaining from alcohol more than doubled in the 18 years between 2001 and 2019, from nine percent to 22 percent.
It also found that people under 18 choosing not to drink rose to 73 percent in 2019, from 39 percent in 2007.
And even more young Australians are questioning their relationship with alcohol, coining the term ‘sober curious’ to describe an informed and reduced approach to drinking.
Gen Z have noticed this shift among their peers, many of whom embrace moderation and take regular breaks from alcohol to improve their physical, mental, and social health.
Young people’s drinking habits appear to be more affected by growing concern about alcohol harms, perhaps because of stronger public health messaging, education, or exposure to the health and social impacts of alcohol.
More can be done to reduce harms
Empowering Australians with knowledge is an important part of a comprehensive approach to reducing alcohol-related harms across all demographics.
Despite widespread, general concern about alcohol, many people are still unaware of the range and magnitude of the harms caused by alcohol products.
Half of Australians are unsure of current government guidelines about the number of standard drinks that we should not exceed in a day or week.
And alarmingly, less than half of Australians know that alcohol causes cancer.
One of those Australians was Corrine, who didn’t know about the link between alcohol and breast cancer until her own diagnosis in 2022.
Corrine wished she knew more about the dangers of alcohol when she was younger – particularly that alcohol is one of the biggest risk factors for breast cancer.
“The uncomfortable truth is that alcohol is classified as a Group 1 Carcinogen… this is the same classification as tobacco smoke, radiation, and asbestos,” Corrine said.
“I can’t know if this knowledge would have changed my drinking when I was younger. But I do believe we need to be armed with the facts.”
Jasmine says science 
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