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According to the latest report from the French Observatory on Drugs and Addictive Tendencies (OFDT), alcohol consumption in France is decreasing… but the number of hospitalizations is increasing. Decryption of this phenomenon.
Even though alcohol consumption continues to decline on French territory, the number of alcohol-related hospitalizations has nevertheless increased in 2023, reveals the French Observatory of Drugs and Addictive Tendencies (OFDT).
The sale of alcoholic beverages at half mast
Alcohol and the French, a long love affair? According to the latest results of this report, yes. But their relationship with alcohol seems to have changed…
Indeed, the year 2023 was marked by “udecline in most indicators linked to the sale and use of alcohol. Thus, the volumes of pure alcohol put on sale decreased again in 2023 (- 3.8% compared to 2022), now standing at an average of 10.35 liters of pure alcohol per inhabitant of more than 15 years”, reveals the investigation.
This decline could be explained by the major decline in wine sales (-4.2% between 2022 and 2023), which still represent the majority of alcoholic beverages sold in France (52%).
“However, the structure of sales shows a shift towards beers, whose sales have been increasing continuously since 2018 and now exceed a quarter of the volumes of alcohol put on sale. further specifies the report.
Young French people are not fond of alcohol
Concerning alcohol consumption, the French seem, here again, to shy away from drinking. Consumption is falling among young people and adults, whether they consume occasionally or daily.
- In adults, “the most marked decrease concerns daily consumption (- 13% between 2021 and 2023). We also see a significant drop (-7.5% compared to 2022) in the number of people killed in fatal accidents with a driver with a positive blood alcohol level.“.
- Among 17-year-olds, the drop in consumption is even more pronounced between 2017 and 2022, “with daily use which decreased by 31%, and use during the month which decreased by 14%. As for occasional heavy monthly drinking, although still notable and affecting nearly a third of young people, it is also decreasing (-16.8% compared to 2017).” Interesting detail: nearly one in five adolescents say they have never consumed alcohol in their life in 2022, a proportion that has tripled in twenty years.
On the other hand, the number of hospitalizations due to alcohol is increasing: +4.1% of stays and +2.5% of patients in 2023 compared to last year. Rarer alcohol consumption, but also more dangerous given the quantities of alcohol ingested (the famous “binge drinking”).
“These stays concern 307,676 patients, the majority of whom are men (73%) and whose average age is 56 years old.“, the report further details.
A new way of consuming
These modifications suggest profound changes in behavior,”moving from a so-called “Mediterranean” mode of consumption, with daily uses, mainly of wine, during meals and in quantities not exceeding a few glasses, to a so-called “Nordic” mode, with less frequent uses, but with larger quantities and in festive contexts”, concludes the study.
In France, alcohol consumption is still responsible for thousands of deaths: 49,000 in 2023, according to figures from the Ministry of Health.
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