Table 1.

Prevalence, Frequency, and Intensity of Binge Drinking^a by Age Group—Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, U.S., 2011^b

Age, years	Prevalencec of binge drinking, %	Binge drinking frequency,d episodes per month	Intensity,e number of drinks per binge drinking episode
18–24	30.0	4.4	8.9
25–34	29.7	3.8	8.2
35–44	21.1	3.9	7.4
45–64	14.1	4.2	6.6
≥ 65	4.3	4.9	5.6
Totals	18.4	4.1	7.7

Source: Kanny D, Liu Y, Brewer RD, Liu H. Binge drinking—United States, 2011. MMWR Suppl. 2013;62(3):77–80.²⁵

^aBinge drinking was defined as consuming four or more drinks on an occasion during the preceding 30 days for women and five or more drinks for men. An occasion is generally defined as 2–3 hours.

^bRespondents were from all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

^cPrevalence = total number of respondents who reported at least one binge drinking episode during the past 30 days divided by the total number of respondents.

^dFrequency = average number of binge drinking episodes reported by all binge drinkers during the past 30 days.

^eIntensity = average largest number of drinks consumed by binge drinkers on any occasion during the past 30 days.