Alcohol Use in New Zealand, Key results of the 2007/08 New Zealand Alcohol and Drug Use Survey

Summary

This report presents the key findings about alcohol use and alcohol-related harm among New Zealand adults, from the 2007/08 New Zealand Alcohol and Drug Use Survey. The survey measured alcohol and drug use among over 6,500 New Zealanders aged 16–64 years from August 2007 to April 2008.

The report covers past-year alcohol use, frequency of drinking, harms related to people's own drinking and to other people's drinking, and help sought for alcohol use. A separate publication will report the findings about the use of other recreational drugs by New Zealand adults.

Key findings from the report include:

• Alcohol is the most commonly used recreational drug in New Zealand, with 85% of adults (aged 16–64 years) having had an alcoholic drink in the past year.
• The prevalence of risky drinking is high among New Zealanders. Six in ten people who drank alcohol in the past year had consumed enough alcohol to feel drunk at least once in the past year, while one in ten had done so on a weekly basis.
• Alcohol-related harm continues to be a social and health issue in New Zealand. Some of the most common harmful effects experienced by people in the past year due to their own alcohol use were harmful effects on their friendships or social life (7%), having had days off work or school (6%) and injuring themselves (5%).
• Youth, Maori men and women, Pacific men, and people living in more deprived neighbourhoods were more likely to drink higher amounts than recommended, to engage in risky drinking behaviours, and to experience more harm due to alcohol use.

Webtables with key results from this publication will be made available soon.
The methodology report for the 2007/08 New Zealand Alcohol and Drug Use Survey will be made available online later in 2009.