Solitary alcohol use is rising among young adults—especially women—raising alarms about future alcohol-related health risks and mental health challenges.

Sharp Rise in Solitary Alcohol Use Raises Public Health Alarm

Solitary drinking is surging among young adults in the United States, reaching levels not seen since the 1970s. A newly published study by the University of Michigan and Carnegie Mellon University reveals that nearly 4 in 10 young adults who consume alcohol reported drinking alone at least once in the past year.

Published in Alcohol: Clinical & Experimental Research, the longitudinal analysis traced solitary drinking habits from 1977 to 2022. Researchers observed a troubling rise in this behavior among people aged 19 to 30, with a particularly sharp increase among women—effectively closing the gender gap that once marked this behavior as more prevalent among men.

Michigan Researchers Find Gender Gap in Solitary Drinking Has Vanished

Lead researcher Megan Patrick, a research professor at the University of Michigan’s Institute for Social Research, said the uptick among young women over the past 25 years is particularly troubling.

“There have been increases in solitary drinking among young women, in particular, over the past 25 years,” Patrick said. “Solitary drinking, or sometimes drinking when they are alone, was reported by about 40% of young adults who drank in the past year.”

The study reviewed responses from 12,851 participants in the university’s Monitoring the Future Panel Study, which tracks behaviors and attitudes among youth nationwide. Michigan has long been a leader in behavioral science research, and these findings carry implications for the state’s public health strategy.

Solitary Drinking Linked to Mental Health Struggles and Addiction Risk

Solitary alcohol use is widely recognized as a behavioral red flag. Kasey Creswell, associate professor of psychology at Carnegie Mellon and lead author of the study, emphasized that drinking alone is often a response to negative emotions such as anxiety, stress, or depression.

“Solitary drinking is a strong predictor of alcohol use disorder,” Creswell said. “Unlike social drinking, solitary drinking is associated with coping mechanisms that increase the risk of long-term harm.”

According to Creswell, this type of drinking is not only more prevalent among today’s youth but also more likely to lead to heavier and more frequent alcohol use over time.

Public Health Policy Must Target At-Risk Young Adults, Experts Say

The data show solitary drinking rebounded sharply starting in the mid-1990s after a period of decline. Public health experts say this shift—especially among young women—should serve as a warning for early intervention.

The study urges sex-specific prevention strategies, pointing out that monitoring how and why people drink is just as critical as tracking how much they consume.

This is especially pressing in Michigan, where state-led public health efforts could benefit from integrating solitary drinking trends into future educational campaigns. Current alcohol misuse prevention programs often overlook context and motivation in favor of simple volume metrics.

Michigan-Based Research Supports Broader NIH Addiction Studies

This research was funded by the National Institutes of Health, including the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and the National Institute on Drug Abuse. While the findings apply nationally, their Michigan research base and public health relevance make them especially important for state-level health departments.

The study’s authors argue that solitary drinking can serve as an early indicator of potential mental health or addiction issues—if identified and addressed promptly.

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