Current High-Intensity Drinking Among Eighth and Tenth Grade Students in the U.S.

INTRODUCTION: This study assessed the prevalence of current high-intensity drinking (i.e., having ten or more drinks in a row in the past 2 weeks) among national samples of U.S. eighth and tenth grade students (at modal ages 14 and 16 years, respectively).

METHODS: Data on high-intensity drinking were provided by 10,210 students participating in the nationally representative Monitoring the Future study in 2016, and analyzed in 2016-2017. Prevalence levels and interactions between grade and key covariates were estimated using procedures that adjusted for the Monitoring the Future study's complex sampling design.

RESULTS: Approximately 2% of adolescents reported current high-intensity drinking, with significant differences by grade (1.2% of eighth graders; 3.1% of tenth graders) and gender (1.7% female; 2.3% male). High-intensity drinking was significantly higher among eighth and tenth grade students who reported any cigarette or marijuana use than among students who reported never using either substance.

CONCLUSIONS: A meaningful percentage of young adolescents in the U.S. engage in high-intensity drinking.