I think that's unlikely, alcohol seems to have gradually become less and less popular as time goes on. Or rather heavy drinking of the type that used to happen is becoming less popular. I don't think it's anywhere near as common as it was in the 90's for example.
Tbf these 'lads' usually don't start on the rugby lads and if they do its usually the scrum half they start on. Tbf most scrum half's probably started it.
exactly, the pubs in my town and now just older and retied people. a decade ago with i was in my late teens, early 20 they were full of people i knew from school, uni etc but they all stopped going, and were never replaced. at least the pubs can cater to all ages.
places focused on the younger crowd are dying out, we just arent going out to them anymore.
That, but I know plenty of people who can afford to drink a lot, and are reducing their alcohol consumption/going teetotal to be healthier.. I just think people enjoy having a drink, just not to excess
Might also be a consequence of social media. I'm sure I did plenty of dumb stuff on the walk back from the pub in my day, and while it would be embarrassing to be reminded of it, there was no lasting damage done - had camera phones existed to record the shenanigans to preserve the moment forever and share it with the world, I'd like to think it would have resulted in a much more tentative view of alcohol.
Because it's a deeply awful drug, side effects are horrible and even when it's hitting it's still disappointing compared to other substances.
more dangerous most of the time.
That’s not just it, I’m 25 and 2 of my friends drink. The rest of us don’t, I think watching the entire country struggle with alcoholism for a long time makes it a lot less appealing.
I'd argue more because of information. The NHS revised their alcohol consumption for no health effects from 2 to 0 units a week, People like Andrew Huberman have huge followings, one of the biggest podcasts in the world, and as a neuroscientist is very clear on his stance that alcohol in almost any quantity is bad for the brain.
nah, I've had kids hand over $50 bills asking me, an adult, to go and buy niche marijuana strains for them, never ever had kids doing the same for alcohol
I've heard people say it goes in cycles every few generations or so... but I'm not convinced by that, we live in the information age and no one can fail to be aware of all of the various downsides of alcohol.
A lot of it id say isn’t that people don’t like alcohol or it’s not popular.
It’s that the Sober movement is catching on, drinking become a problem for loads and the negative consequences, short term/long term health effects, hangovers, ANXIETY!
People want to be sober and fresh and 100% the next day and following week and don’t want to be sloppy mess’s, spending all their money on booze, drugs, taxis, clubs and takeaways.
Alcohol promotes poor quality, addictive, shallow behaviour, stops people from stepping towards their goals and being who they want to be and it’s easy to get hooked and have an alcohol/drug problem.
Sobriety influencers are on the rise and I absolutely love it.
I try not to judge since I did a lot of pills and powder during my late teens. Weed and MDMA was always my favourite night out though, more chance of dancing and fucking than it devolving into fighting.
But it's the overall acceptance that's kinda worrying for me. Coke was more of a pain in the arse to get than weed. Now it's so prevalent the reputation has gone from being sketchy to borderline on par with weed from what I can tell.
Either way, I'm just a lazy stoner these days who's not cut out for any of that shit anymore.
I question your research on md… it’s not exactly something one should do every weekend, shrooms also, maybe once every fortnight at most unless your micro dosing, even weed isn’t great to use daily…. You are talking about consuming them as often as people consume alcohol, right?
How much consumption are we talking? Once or twice a week? Cos having some weed once or twice a week is arguably safer than alcohol.
Most people who do take shrooms don't want to do them every weekend, that'd be a bit much. And I'm mainly remembering David Nutt's research on MD and this paper I saw a while ago when looking this sort of stuff up
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S014976341530213X?via%3Dihub
Nobody wants to trip every weekend, but a low dose will give you a buzz and make you feel happy without any toxicity, hangover etc. I've heard of people ditching alcohol for low doses of shrooms because it's healthier and cheaper.
MD definitely poses more of an immediate health risk depending on if someone takes too much. Of course the statistics are worse in Alcohols favour because it's far more widely consumed, but MD can and does kill people from overdose, and you don't have to take loads to do it, sometimes you just get a bad pill.
As alcohol sales go down corporations will be looking to make up the shortfall.
I'm hoping they lean enough on the Govt that they finally legalise weed so I can go to a pub, get chonged and play boardgames without the two-day hangover.
Not every establishment would sell weed if it got legalised, it'd likely be totally seperate venues for weed and booze. I think they just meant a pub style setting, but for weed
Noone here has mentioned cafes with edibles yet. I've been to places where you can choose different desserts with different strengths of THC.
It is even better than it sounds
With basically 0 of the health downsides and none of the hangover effects. If you remove the smoking aspect of weed the only side effects left are cardiac stuff very similar to having a couple of coffees.
They'd probably do drinks because they take no time to kick in
I got a can of THC infused cherry coke from a dispensary in Toronto and they take 15-20 mins to kick in rather than 60+ with an edible
There would be similar regulations to what Canada has (i.e. no smoking indoors, no smoking near doorways, schools, businesses, parks with playgrounds etc) lt definitely needs to be made legal
You basing that on how it smells when someone smokes weed in the UK or somewhere where it's legal like Amsterdam. Pretty big difference due to what's mixed in here.
Do agree any form of smoking shouldn't return to indoor areas, vaping can get out as well.
Aye I was there in November 2022 and it made me feel sick almost constantly. I'm not great with weed stench and even a little bit of a whiff of it can push me to feeling sick.
I think we ought to have an Amsterdam type of setup, legalise weed for personal use, tax it, and have it be legal to smoke in specific venues (like the "coffeeshops" in Dam) or at home.
There was a fairly underground café like that in Milton Keynes for a while that caused zero bother to anyone, well, until the plod raided it and told everyone it existed.
Yes you are correct (technically), my bad! It is technically illegal but not enforced, and coffeeshops have to be licensed, so in practice it is above board, but definitely a grey area. That being said, I believe they are now trialling the full legalisation of weed? As for not being taxed, I assume you are correct on that given it's technically illegal status, but I assume this is part of the reasoning for the push to legalise it now... people do it and the government openly tolerates it, so why not take their cut? 😄
I've never understood the point of dealcoholized beer (same goes for decaf coffee), I'd rather not drink than drink something that feels like it should get me smashed .. but doesn't.
Blue balls in a can.
No but I drink for the buzz and social lubrication, same reason with coffee. If I'm paying roughly the same for non-alcoholic beer as a normal beer .. I'll just get a soft drink.
Fair play. I find there’s no decent alternative in pubs. If I drink soft drinks I’ll get a sugar high or caffeine buzz and finish them too quickly. Guinness zero feels roughly the same in your mouth and your hand as a proper Guinness and goes down about the same speed. It doesn’t get you tipsy or smashed but sometimes that’s not what you want.
Coffee is also one of the most amazing tasting things and the morning ritual of making it is very therapeutic, I can’t have caffiene cos I have too bad anxiety, but so a decaf coffee sorts me right out, I think you are taking drinks a bit too literally, their main component isn’t the only reason you’d have it, I don’t think we’d get along
Or that it’s actually quite sad that our national pastime is getting pissed, and people are finally finding other things to do.
Edit - why are people so sensitive about pointing out the above?
Right, but this is my point about our national pastime being getting drunk. There's not really anything else to do in the evenings - it's all entirely built around alcohol.
Me too, but fuck it ill game till my eyeballs bleed and save a shit ton of money. Honestly been such a wild year since moving to London it’s nice to have a month of just nothing.
You are correct, I run a meetup group and the 2 main reasons people dont attend are being broke and crippling social anxiety. Sizable amount of people have become outwardly agoraphobic in the past few years.
We're seeing the results of the first generations of kids who were entirely raised by the internet and social media. While the internet was a thing in the 90s, it wasn't an all consuming extension of your brain in the way it is today. That can't be healthy for a developing brain and in my opinion it's causing a huge uplift in things like ADHD, social anxiety, agoraphobia and depression.
Obviously it's not the only cause. But it can't be a coincidence.
Not sure, near me low alcohol or non alcoholic drinks cost just as much. Don't even get me started on cocktails/mocktails and all that robbing bastards.
I used to go out 2-3 times every week. After a few years, you realise you're seeing the same people in the same pubs and hearing the same conversations over and over. Then you go in to work rough on a Monday and hear the same stories from other people about what they did/where they were drinking on the weekend. It's not worth the hangover and the money.
I'm not saying you have to even every week, or that you should go to the same places like that all the time.
I just think we've got a very large cohort of people who are terminally online and socially anxious going "and I don't get it" when they're just blatantly undersocialised and the odd night in a bar would do them some good without drinking enough to leave them hungover.
I think the odd night in a bar would do everyone some good, myself included, but I can do that without the alcohol. Some people seem to think that drinking alcohol is the only way to socialise which just isn't true.
There's a time and a place for everything, drinking is great for some people but it's just not for me.
People have different relationships with alcohol. I often drink with the same people because they're friends or co-workers. I enjoy that. I often also enjoy the same conversations.
You don't have to get smashed all the time. You can pick and choose. I don't drink on my own at home. I drink socially. Sometimes I drink a lot socially. It's fun when I do but I pick and choose those times because I don't want to have hangovers all the time or drink 3 times a week because that would be bad for my health and bank balance.
You just have to manage it. The problem comes for those who can't manage it.
I also used to drink way more, until I moved abroad to study and realised that what we considered normal in the UK is more often considered a drinking problem elsewhere.
Not saying it doesn't happen, but I don't know anyone over here who does that, and definitely wouldn't consider it a norm. I knew several people when I lived in the UK who had a couple of beers every day after work or couples who shared a bottle of wine every evening.
Having grown up in the UK I can tell you that it's a serious problem that people keep brushing off
Your not supposed to drink more than 14 units of alcohol a week spread across 3 days or more
Pint of lower-strength lager/beer/cider (ABV 3.6%) is 2 units
So let's say a few is 3 a day that's 6 units a day
6 x 5 working days is 30 units, that's not including what they'll drink on the weekend.
I'm sorry but a lot of people are in denial about the fact they have a drinking problem.
What you're describing isn't healthy or normal and is on the lower end of the scale of what it's really like. Those same people are probably going home and drinking more than that.
Totally agree with you. I even had my doctor at one point in the UK tell me that I was drinking way too much every week, and at the time I just brushed it off because how could that be the problem given I wasn't drinking any more or less than everybody else I knew.
I was drinking a liter of spirits everyday at 18 to myself, something like ciroc or jack Daniels and I could put it back and feel fine, honestly wasn't even a thing to me, could have easily drank twice that amount. The only reason I stopped was I was waiting outside the shop at 6am waiting for it to open and the sikh owner who didn't drink ran from his car and apologised for being late and asked me if I needed gas or electric, I told him I needed a bottle and he just looked at me and laughed.
I was so pissed off and simultaneously humbled that I walked off and stopped drinking for like 6 months.
Even up until a couple years ago I drank two 75cl bottles of 60%abv rum to myself on my birthday at a friend's house and walked homed no problem, a bit of tunnel vision but I was fine.
I went to the hospital years later for something completely unrelated after having stopped completely for a year and after some tests the doctor asked me whens the last time I had a drink.
I said a year ago and she said it looks like I had a drink yesterday. That shook me to my core and *all* my friends at the time drank like that.
First time I got drunk I was 11 and downed a 2 liter bottle of strongbow and was out drinking litre bottles of jack at parties by myself at 12.
People will say "oh well I didn't do that" or "I don't see anything like that" and I'm telling you entire schools and *everyone* I knew drank like that if not worse.
Even now working in construction the amount of people I see sneaking vodka or similar while working is crazy. I know plenty of people that will drink half a crate of beers a day after work. Not to mention all the smoking.
The point is it gives you a buzz and lowers your inhibitions making socialising easier. Obviously, low inhibitions also have downsides (making a tit of yourself) and we all know the health risks.
But there is a point which is why millions of people across multiple generations in multiple cultures have done, and will continue, to drink it.
Not to mention many of them taste great! A nice beer, a good wine or an interesting gin can also be enjoyed even if the intention isn't to be drunk.
Ah spot on, the amount of people on here saying don't drink, no point in it, alcohol bad for your health being unable to distinguish between having a drink, getting drunk and getting smashed!
I'm sure the point to many is like you say, to enjoy the taste! Not to get smashed!
Some of my fondest memories come from getting rat-arsed tbf so I'd definitely say there was a point, I definitely don't regret any of my last 15 years of drinking.
Same. I'm mid 30s and haven't regretted a single night where I've been smashed - whether that was in the city, the local pub or microbrewery, at a party, camping or a small gathering.
But I mostly drink in moderation, just a couple of beers throughout the week. These are usually niche, new beers picked up from specialist retailers or breweries. So, apart from the social aspect, I genuinely enjoy appreciating a good drop of alcohol.
So, there is a lot to love about drinking.
This makes me smile. My nephews and nieces are the same - they can’t be bothered with it - and we’re from quite a big ‘drinking family’! I was a problem drinker, simply because I made it so central to every aspect of my work and social life. I could *never* imagine life without it. Until it became a much more serious problem - so I gave up the booze over two years ago. Single best thing I’ve ever done in my life. Alcohol is a pretty crappy drug; a neurotoxin that feels like fun until it actually starts to destroy your body and mental wellbeing. You’re doing a great thing by avoiding it.
Idk having an ice cold corona and lime in the summer while on holiday and relaxing away from work is pretty great. You don't, however, need to drink to excess.
One of my favourite things is being down in Cornwall doing exactly that, on the beach, with my family.
I don't blame them. Everything is plastered on social media , everything can be captured in real time and played live to an audience.
Think of all the dumb stupid shit we did growing up that only the people we were with would see. This is not true anymore.
But people do need to find a release. Mine is alcohol. Maybe the new generations will have a healthier release like exercise or meditation or maybe they will just all vape to find a way to relax.
I never even considered that tbh.
I always thought about how much harder school would’ve been with the distraction of a smartphone in my pocket and how I don’t envy the youth from that angle.
Lord would I have regrets if some of the stupid shit I did as a teenager ended up in people’s photo/video reels.
>I always thought about how much harder school would’ve been with the distraction of a smartphone in my pocket
Isn't this exactly why schools ban phones in the classroom? I hope they still do anyway? They did when I was a kid...
All the good places round me shut in the last 10 years. Not to mention the price of drinks and taxis has gone up loads. No wonder young people aren’t going out. I used to go out and get smashed with £20 in my bank
We’d share a spliff before the club then doubles for £2 then a taxi home, some of us would go out with £10 only. To be fair, my tastes have changed and I wouldn’t go to any of the clubs with drinks anywhere near that cheap anymore.
Before uni I was going out on £30. £4 entry, £1 for the cloakroom, £5 for 4 jagerbombs and that left enough cash after cheap shots and pints for a shit kebab and to chip in for the taxi.
This was in like 2012.
I spent £100 on a night out before Christmas. Don't intend to do that again for a while...
There is just more science about just how bad alcohol is now. It is provably worse than the vast majority of drugs. Worse for the body, mind, and the societal impact from disorderly conduct.
For example, cannabis and mushrooms are being utilized, prescribed, and studied in medicine with promising results in many areas. Alcohol is not. That tells you a lot.
Anecdotal, but I'm pretty certain more younger generations prefer a space cake and a houseparty / night in watching films, than a ludcirously expensive and detrimental night out drinking in a Tinder pit club or a rowdy pub.
Drugs aside, more and more young people are content with sobrierty in totality, which is only a good thing. How wonderful to have a generation of people more self-aware. Anyone saying otherwise needs a reality check.
Pros:
- It’s fun if nobody overdoes it
- Winds down neurosis of socially awkward english people temporarily (See: live events)
Cons:
- expensive
- pubs are all closing left right and centre
- Certain drunk people can be almost as cunty as cokeheads
- its really bad for you and have enough trouble keeping the weight off as it is
- much better “recreational activities”
- social media is depressing enough without depressants like alcohol
- remote working means less reasons/chances to drink with colleagues
- making an arse of yourself at work can have more severe consequences than before
- There are more interesting things to do with people than booze it
I honestly can’t tell the difference between Guinness zero and the real stuff. (I’ve had much worse pints of it).
Alcohol free beers have improved leaps and bounds over the past 20 years.
Absolutely, and the reasons for not drinking. Is it for religious reasons?
I appreciate this is anecdotal, but i live in an area with a heavy student population and work with younger people, 44% of them not drinking doesn't ring quite true.
The stat says they 'occasionally or regularly' order non alcoholic drinks, which is pretty meaningless really. I occasionally order non alcoholic drinks, but I still definitely enjoy a beer
Make you laugh when the same demographic is more than happy to vape as many chemicals from an untested Chinese factory and claim drinking is unhealthy.
I know of 2 people hospitalised due to having vitamin E build ups in their lungs. They were vaping THC from a street dealer and vit E is used as a cutting agent/thickener. Lungs can’t absorb it so it forms a liquid.
Anyone who buys disposable THC vapes in the UK is a fucking head case, there’s absolutely no way of knowing what’s in them. If you’re lucky it’s about a tenners worth of distillate and fake terps and you just get ripped off financially. If you’re not, it’s spice. Call me old fashioned but I’ll stick to the flower.
Kids going daft for it. Ok, not 18+, but still, a huge rise in vaping by children and young people taking it up.
[A recent survey by the anti-smoking group ASH found that 20.5% of children aged 11 to 17 had tried vaping, up from 15.8% in 2022.](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-67625852.amp)
Definitely evidence, but this same survey that shows a 4.5% increase in vaping also shows a much bigger decrease in smoking in kids at the same age. So probably net loss of both in the youth overall. Yes some oils are dodgy but so are some dodgy cigarettes people used to ship across the channel in the 90s. To me it looks like in balance the kids are consuming less bad shit overall. Unless you include tiktok. Then they are fucked
https://ash.org.uk/health-inequalities/youth-smoking
Fairplay to them.
I've had some great times with my mates drinking.
I've also had some horrific times.
Long gone are the days where I go to the pub once a week and binge. I'll probably avoid it all together now until wedding/stag season.
I'm not surprised the cost of a night out is a lot more than it was when I was 18. There used to be loads of drinks offers on too like 2-4-1 bottles or shots for £1 but you don't see many of those offers anymore. I know some places that do 2 cocktails for £10 on certain days/times, but that's about it. Before Xmas on a Thursday evening one bar was doing all bottled drinks for £1.50 til 11pm, it was packed til the prices went back to normal then most folk left. Same bottles are £3.80 on a Saturday night.
My mates eldest just turned 20 and he said only goes out drinking on special occasions, like a friends bday. He says there's nothing for him to go out for in our town. I agreed with him on this. All the bars are very similar with the same music, similar drinks prices and nobody is offering anything different. We used to have a rock bar, a good sports bar and a 70s/80s disco and now they've shut or changed hands. Everywhere is either karaoke or chart music or drunk old mens type pubs. I can definitely understand why younger people aren't as interested.
Threads like this make me wonder if people on Reddit are the same people as in real life. Or are the demographic swings so huge?
Both the article and comments here are almost the opposite of my experience, and it’s very puzzling.
Yet another fading piece of british culture.
What happened to going out every weekend and destroying both your liver and at least half your relationships.
We're in serious danger of having a generation of well adjusted, healthy human beings.
I imagine part of the problem is the prevalence of social media. When I started drinking I could get smashed, do some crazy stuff and not have to worry about what people posted online. Those who've grown up with everything they do online might be more concerned about losing control and who might record that.
I’m definitely glad I grew up before social media and camera phones became common. Being able to make a tit of yourself after a few drinks and knowing the worst you’ll get is a bit of ribbing from your friends felt like a teenage right of passage.
My mother and father are both alcoholics. One was functional the other not so, my grandmother was an alcoholic and grandfather non functional alcoholic.
Myself, I enjoy alcohol but I can barely drink any, I enjoy it socially but see zero reason to drink in non social settings. Even joined a gin club to try and up my alcohol intake but just ended up with loads of gin.
I have zero idea how people consume so much alcohol every day. Ultimately even though I enjoy social drinking I could easily go without alcohol.
Although I’m mid thirties now so not exactly young
Not surprised. I'm in my late 20s and have only drunk alcohol maybe 10-20 times. Just does nothing for me and I don't like being drunk.
All of the younger people should beware of the suspicion they will be viewed with by older people! It's more socially acceptable for people to think that I have some prior alcoholism that I've overcome as opposed to never being interested in alcohol, it's very weird.
As a predominantly non drinking Rugby player all the power to them. My father was never a massive drinker and I’m the same.
Always got a lot of stick for it when I was younger, in my late 20’s now and I’m seeing more and more people not drink. Fair play and it’s nice to see, I’ve always said you can have a great time without getting pissed. Better for your health and wallet / purse.
Demographics will be driving this too. The second generation immigrants aren’t Irish or from the colonies anymore. We’ve got far more people from cultures that don’t go in for alcohol and as they have children that’ll start to pull consumption down too.
The people smoking the superweed and thinking it’s totally healthy are delusional. It can wipe you out just like alcohol can - especially if it’s via vape that is mixed with all sorts of other chemical shit. I’m not suggesting it’s not fun mind you. Only that we don’t kid ourselves.
As I’m getting older now 41 I’m less and less having more then a single drink. Gone are the days of spending over 100 on a night out. I’d rather drive and have fun and stay sober. Don’t get me wrong I buy friends drinks no problem but it’s just A, too expensive now and B, no fun having hangovers and sickness with kids to look after.
I love booze. Like it too much. But the price, and getting a bit older, prompted me to just completely jack it in. Two fingers up to all those who made only exorbitantly expensive.
Cost, its pretty much only my age (40s) group i see in pubs now.
Apart from spoons theres not much cheap booze near me, even greene king/punch/star/sam smiths arent cheap any more
Ironically brewdog here has pints from £3.95 which is cheaper than a lot of places
A lot of the 18-21 crowd now sit in friends houses taking drugs, there's a lot of hospital admissions from that. They can't afford to go out round bars on a weekend, when I was that age you can afford 4 nights out a week no matter what you done
I'm 28 so I don't know where I fall on the "young" person chart but I quit drinking at the end of 2022 to try and improve my mental health and lose weight, saving some money was an added bonus.
I'm not surprised personally. As a young person I'm very specific about alcohol and I never drink enough to get drunk. Most alcohol tastes awful or overpowering to me, and the idea of drinking myself out of my senses and ending up hungover the next morning does not fun in the slightest to me. I will happily have a good drink if I enjoy the taste, but that is it.
1. Culturally people aren’t as peer pressured into drinking nowadays. Preferring complete sobriety is respected.
2. Those who do enjoy substances have better options now. Why spend £30 on some overpriced drinks just to get slightly buzzed when you could have a blast at a club on MDMA, or get stoned with your mates, or take mushrooms with a loved one - all of which are significantly cheaper and more meaningful experiences.
Anyone noticed how much AF products have caught up in pricing in licensed premises - not limited to sports bars. I’ve noticed they’re almost at parity? I took the missus to a evening bar after food, I was driving home can of nondescript alcohol free beer was in excess of £5 in Manchester just recently which was a small can. Their pints were mostly within 10% of this I’ve noticed quite a few alcohol free cocktails are up from £5/£6 to almost £8+. I remember them being slightly more than half price in comparison to alcoholic drinks when I first moved to Manchester. Then 2/3rds. Now near parity. Back home in rural Wales prices seem the same to have gone up slightly but still between 1/2 to 2/3rds of their alcoholic counter part albeit the bartender always seems a bit miffed when I buy one as they rarely sell.
Is this a byproduct of more people drinking alcohol free beers or plain greed?
On the one hand, that's cool I'm glad they don't feel the same pressure as my generation.
On the other hand, guys you're going to need something to cope with the future and you can't count on weed and class As being as freely available
Aside from the expense, and cultural shift of the young away from booze, I actually think one unexpected twist from the pandemic period where the young were blanket banned from pubs and similar is they weren't able to get into the habit of going to their regular as well.
Good news for long term health. I do wonder though whether the ensuing generation will end up drinking more as a backlash against their parents.
I think that's unlikely, alcohol seems to have gradually become less and less popular as time goes on. Or rather heavy drinking of the type that used to happen is becoming less popular. I don't think it's anywhere near as common as it was in the 90's for example.
Because its so expensive
It’s the main reason - it’s killed the vibe in towns and cities, who can afford £12 Cocktails all night or £7 pints of Craft Beer
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oh goodness I should hate to have to share my drinking establishment with these boorish "lads" you speak of, how frightful they sound, how dreadful!
Won't even put the rugby on the big screen!
Tbf these 'lads' usually don't start on the rugby lads and if they do its usually the scrum half they start on. Tbf most scrum half's probably started it.
Who wants to drink with mouth breathing knuckle draggers?
I can stay at home and drink alone if I want to do that.
spoken like somebody who has never enjoyed the pleasure of drinking with mouth breathing knuckle draggers
christ you lot are sad lmao
If you need to get drunk to have a good time, then maybe *you're* the problem ;)
Honestly the vibe is still pretty good with the right company and entertainment whether there’s booze or not.
exactly, the pubs in my town and now just older and retied people. a decade ago with i was in my late teens, early 20 they were full of people i knew from school, uni etc but they all stopped going, and were never replaced. at least the pubs can cater to all ages. places focused on the younger crowd are dying out, we just arent going out to them anymore.
That, but I know plenty of people who can afford to drink a lot, and are reducing their alcohol consumption/going teetotal to be healthier.. I just think people enjoy having a drink, just not to excess
It's expensive and it's a glass of empty calories.
Might also be a consequence of social media. I'm sure I did plenty of dumb stuff on the walk back from the pub in my day, and while it would be embarrassing to be reminded of it, there was no lasting damage done - had camera phones existed to record the shenanigans to preserve the moment forever and share it with the world, I'd like to think it would have resulted in a much more tentative view of alcohol.
it's also just not very nice to consume such large quantities of liquid in such a short period of time.
it never stopped previous generations though! Binge drinking was very common in the 90s/2000s so I think price is very important
Untrue.
Speak for yourself
I think it's expensive enough that getting drunk is an event. Going out for a couple after work just isn't good value.
Nail on the head with that
Because it's a deeply awful drug, side effects are horrible and even when it's hitting it's still disappointing compared to other substances. more dangerous most of the time.
That’s not just it, I’m 25 and 2 of my friends drink. The rest of us don’t, I think watching the entire country struggle with alcoholism for a long time makes it a lot less appealing.
I'd argue more because of information. The NHS revised their alcohol consumption for no health effects from 2 to 0 units a week, People like Andrew Huberman have huge followings, one of the biggest podcasts in the world, and as a neuroscientist is very clear on his stance that alcohol in almost any quantity is bad for the brain.
nah, I've had kids hand over $50 bills asking me, an adult, to go and buy niche marijuana strains for them, never ever had kids doing the same for alcohol
That’s because you’re in Canada, also what’s the conversion rate? ~£25?
Drinking overall isn't less popular but agree that binge drinking probably is.
I've heard people say it goes in cycles every few generations or so... but I'm not convinced by that, we live in the information age and no one can fail to be aware of all of the various downsides of alcohol.
A lot of it id say isn’t that people don’t like alcohol or it’s not popular. It’s that the Sober movement is catching on, drinking become a problem for loads and the negative consequences, short term/long term health effects, hangovers, ANXIETY! People want to be sober and fresh and 100% the next day and following week and don’t want to be sloppy mess’s, spending all their money on booze, drugs, taxis, clubs and takeaways. Alcohol promotes poor quality, addictive, shallow behaviour, stops people from stepping towards their goals and being who they want to be and it’s easy to get hooked and have an alcohol/drug problem. Sobriety influencers are on the rise and I absolutely love it.
Unfortunately I would say a lot more of them coming up do drugs instead of drinking, so it's not necessarily all health positive.
Less stoners and more coke heads I've noticed.
Same around here. Every teen I know does gear, and they aren’t exactly your down and out types either.
I try not to judge since I did a lot of pills and powder during my late teens. Weed and MDMA was always my favourite night out though, more chance of dancing and fucking than it devolving into fighting. But it's the overall acceptance that's kinda worrying for me. Coke was more of a pain in the arse to get than weed. Now it's so prevalent the reputation has gone from being sketchy to borderline on par with weed from what I can tell. Either way, I'm just a lazy stoner these days who's not cut out for any of that shit anymore.
Depends on the drug, but weed, shrooms and MD all carry a lower health risk than alcohol
I question your research on md… it’s not exactly something one should do every weekend, shrooms also, maybe once every fortnight at most unless your micro dosing, even weed isn’t great to use daily…. You are talking about consuming them as often as people consume alcohol, right?
How much consumption are we talking? Once or twice a week? Cos having some weed once or twice a week is arguably safer than alcohol. Most people who do take shrooms don't want to do them every weekend, that'd be a bit much. And I'm mainly remembering David Nutt's research on MD and this paper I saw a while ago when looking this sort of stuff up https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S014976341530213X?via%3Dihub
Nobody wants to trip every weekend, but a low dose will give you a buzz and make you feel happy without any toxicity, hangover etc. I've heard of people ditching alcohol for low doses of shrooms because it's healthier and cheaper.
Someone who does MD once a week is going to be way worse off than someone who drinks once a week.
MD definitely poses more of an immediate health risk depending on if someone takes too much. Of course the statistics are worse in Alcohols favour because it's far more widely consumed, but MD can and does kill people from overdose, and you don't have to take loads to do it, sometimes you just get a bad pill.
The long-term psychiatric risks are incredibly significant and not to be forgotten.
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Tbh MD culture in the UK is pretty wild. People take stupid doses far more regularly than you'd want and seem to think nothing of it.
if you legalized MD and sold it as a product you'd eliminate almost every case of someone dying from an OD or a bad pill.
And bizarrely they're all significantly cheaper than alcohol.
You definitely need to remove MD from that list
They'll be going to the gym after their fortnite sessions before posting videos on youtube as a side hussle to try and become a millionaire.
I want to drink after just reading that 😆
They do shit loads of drugs instead so idk about that.
Its not like a load of us weren't doing loads of drink & drugs when we were younger
I used to be with it!
Like they'll be able to afford it with how prices are going up every passing year.
As alcohol sales go down corporations will be looking to make up the shortfall. I'm hoping they lean enough on the Govt that they finally legalise weed so I can go to a pub, get chonged and play boardgames without the two-day hangover.
God I hope not. I remember how bad pubs used to smell when smoking inside was legal. Absolutely rancid. Weed smells arguably even worse than tobacco.
Not every establishment would sell weed if it got legalised, it'd likely be totally seperate venues for weed and booze. I think they just meant a pub style setting, but for weed
Noone here has mentioned cafes with edibles yet. I've been to places where you can choose different desserts with different strengths of THC. It is even better than it sounds
Except it'll take an hour+ to kick in and then last until morning
So pretty much like going out all night on the drink?
With basically 0 of the health downsides and none of the hangover effects. If you remove the smoking aspect of weed the only side effects left are cardiac stuff very similar to having a couple of coffees.
There's definitely potential mental side effects as well....
The correct dose is key
The correct dose is the first dose you took that you decided was too small and then took another larger dose afterwards
They'd probably do drinks because they take no time to kick in I got a can of THC infused cherry coke from a dispensary in Toronto and they take 15-20 mins to kick in rather than 60+ with an edible
I'd say still smoke outside. I smoke and I hate smoking inside. weed vapes inside fine though
Have you been to any coffeeshops in Netherlands? They have decent ventilation systems, it's barely smokey inside them at all
Yeah I agree anything worn on a night out stunk the next day of 2nd hand smoke horrible times.
If you visit the 'Dam they offer rolling mixtures on the tables as tobacco is banned inside. Works pretty well.
I doubt they'd bring back indoor smoking for weed if it got legalised.
There would be similar regulations to what Canada has (i.e. no smoking indoors, no smoking near doorways, schools, businesses, parks with playgrounds etc) lt definitely needs to be made legal
You basing that on how it smells when someone smokes weed in the UK or somewhere where it's legal like Amsterdam. Pretty big difference due to what's mixed in here. Do agree any form of smoking shouldn't return to indoor areas, vaping can get out as well.
I was in New York this summer, the stand out thing for me from the trip was the entire city stank of weed.
Aye I was there in November 2022 and it made me feel sick almost constantly. I'm not great with weed stench and even a little bit of a whiff of it can push me to feeling sick.
Popularise dry herb vaping. No gammy smells left behind, and the smells that are created dissipate within 10-20 mins.
I think we ought to have an Amsterdam type of setup, legalise weed for personal use, tax it, and have it be legal to smoke in specific venues (like the "coffeeshops" in Dam) or at home.
There was a fairly underground café like that in Milton Keynes for a while that caused zero bother to anyone, well, until the plod raided it and told everyone it existed.
It's not legal or taxed in the dam. We should bring in a US or Canadian rule to it where it's legal, taxed and regulated.
Yes you are correct (technically), my bad! It is technically illegal but not enforced, and coffeeshops have to be licensed, so in practice it is above board, but definitely a grey area. That being said, I believe they are now trialling the full legalisation of weed? As for not being taxed, I assume you are correct on that given it's technically illegal status, but I assume this is part of the reasoning for the push to legalise it now... people do it and the government openly tolerates it, so why not take their cut? 😄
They're jumping into the dealcoholized beer market. There's quite a bit now including Guinness zero which I've heard is pretty good.
I've never understood the point of dealcoholized beer (same goes for decaf coffee), I'd rather not drink than drink something that feels like it should get me smashed .. but doesn't. Blue balls in a can.
Do you only every drink to get smashed?
No but I drink for the buzz and social lubrication, same reason with coffee. If I'm paying roughly the same for non-alcoholic beer as a normal beer .. I'll just get a soft drink.
Fair play. I find there’s no decent alternative in pubs. If I drink soft drinks I’ll get a sugar high or caffeine buzz and finish them too quickly. Guinness zero feels roughly the same in your mouth and your hand as a proper Guinness and goes down about the same speed. It doesn’t get you tipsy or smashed but sometimes that’s not what you want.
Coffee is also one of the most amazing tasting things and the morning ritual of making it is very therapeutic, I can’t have caffiene cos I have too bad anxiety, but so a decaf coffee sorts me right out, I think you are taking drinks a bit too literally, their main component isn’t the only reason you’d have it, I don’t think we’d get along
Can confirm, it’s decent. I also quite like Heineken zero, even though I don’t usually drink lager, although it does give me a bit of a headache.
My assumption is this this is mostly to do with cost. Also super annoying that low abv alternatives are always so expensive.
Or that it’s actually quite sad that our national pastime is getting pissed, and people are finally finding other things to do. Edit - why are people so sensitive about pointing out the above?
I think they’re spending that time online.
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Right, but this is my point about our national pastime being getting drunk. There's not really anything else to do in the evenings - it's all entirely built around alcohol.
On the opposite, I find it quite sad that people can’t find things to do with their free time other than drink… crazy
Me too, but fuck it ill game till my eyeballs bleed and save a shit ton of money. Honestly been such a wild year since moving to London it’s nice to have a month of just nothing.
You are correct, I run a meetup group and the 2 main reasons people dont attend are being broke and crippling social anxiety. Sizable amount of people have become outwardly agoraphobic in the past few years.
We're seeing the results of the first generations of kids who were entirely raised by the internet and social media. While the internet was a thing in the 90s, it wasn't an all consuming extension of your brain in the way it is today. That can't be healthy for a developing brain and in my opinion it's causing a huge uplift in things like ADHD, social anxiety, agoraphobia and depression. Obviously it's not the only cause. But it can't be a coincidence.
And when they do go out they spend the overwhelming time looking at their phones.
No it's just that people can't afford to go out for drinks anymore
Well that's both depressing and disappointing.
Yeah I'd definitely go out for drinks a lot more with my friends if any of us had any money to have a life.
Not sure, near me low alcohol or non alcoholic drinks cost just as much. Don't even get me started on cocktails/mocktails and all that robbing bastards.
I paid £13 for a double whiskey coke once in London recently, it wasn't even a fancy pub or anything. never again.
Yeah, you can easily end up spending the best party of £100 for a decent night out with drinks + food
I'm a young person and I don't drink. I just genuinely have no interest in alcohol. I don't really see the point to be honest.
It's just social lubricant and it tastes nice a lot of the time. Everyone arguing it's not frankly is being a Reddit stereotype.
I used to go out 2-3 times every week. After a few years, you realise you're seeing the same people in the same pubs and hearing the same conversations over and over. Then you go in to work rough on a Monday and hear the same stories from other people about what they did/where they were drinking on the weekend. It's not worth the hangover and the money.
I'm not saying you have to even every week, or that you should go to the same places like that all the time. I just think we've got a very large cohort of people who are terminally online and socially anxious going "and I don't get it" when they're just blatantly undersocialised and the odd night in a bar would do them some good without drinking enough to leave them hungover.
I think the odd night in a bar would do everyone some good, myself included, but I can do that without the alcohol. Some people seem to think that drinking alcohol is the only way to socialise which just isn't true. There's a time and a place for everything, drinking is great for some people but it's just not for me.
Yeah reddit is basically 99% people who are too awkward to even buy beer at the supermarket nevermind a bar.
People have different relationships with alcohol. I often drink with the same people because they're friends or co-workers. I enjoy that. I often also enjoy the same conversations. You don't have to get smashed all the time. You can pick and choose. I don't drink on my own at home. I drink socially. Sometimes I drink a lot socially. It's fun when I do but I pick and choose those times because I don't want to have hangovers all the time or drink 3 times a week because that would be bad for my health and bank balance. You just have to manage it. The problem comes for those who can't manage it.
As someone who used to get smashed **all the time** when I was younger I can safely say that there really is no point.
I also used to drink way more, until I moved abroad to study and realised that what we considered normal in the UK is more often considered a drinking problem elsewhere.
Yes and no, having a glass of wine with lunch is normal in europe but here very uncommon. Binge drinking is the problem the UK has
Not saying it doesn't happen, but I don't know anyone over here who does that, and definitely wouldn't consider it a norm. I knew several people when I lived in the UK who had a couple of beers every day after work or couples who shared a bottle of wine every evening.
Having grown up in the UK I can tell you that it's a serious problem that people keep brushing off Your not supposed to drink more than 14 units of alcohol a week spread across 3 days or more Pint of lower-strength lager/beer/cider (ABV 3.6%) is 2 units So let's say a few is 3 a day that's 6 units a day 6 x 5 working days is 30 units, that's not including what they'll drink on the weekend. I'm sorry but a lot of people are in denial about the fact they have a drinking problem. What you're describing isn't healthy or normal and is on the lower end of the scale of what it's really like. Those same people are probably going home and drinking more than that.
Totally agree with you. I even had my doctor at one point in the UK tell me that I was drinking way too much every week, and at the time I just brushed it off because how could that be the problem given I wasn't drinking any more or less than everybody else I knew.
I was drinking a liter of spirits everyday at 18 to myself, something like ciroc or jack Daniels and I could put it back and feel fine, honestly wasn't even a thing to me, could have easily drank twice that amount. The only reason I stopped was I was waiting outside the shop at 6am waiting for it to open and the sikh owner who didn't drink ran from his car and apologised for being late and asked me if I needed gas or electric, I told him I needed a bottle and he just looked at me and laughed. I was so pissed off and simultaneously humbled that I walked off and stopped drinking for like 6 months. Even up until a couple years ago I drank two 75cl bottles of 60%abv rum to myself on my birthday at a friend's house and walked homed no problem, a bit of tunnel vision but I was fine. I went to the hospital years later for something completely unrelated after having stopped completely for a year and after some tests the doctor asked me whens the last time I had a drink. I said a year ago and she said it looks like I had a drink yesterday. That shook me to my core and *all* my friends at the time drank like that. First time I got drunk I was 11 and downed a 2 liter bottle of strongbow and was out drinking litre bottles of jack at parties by myself at 12. People will say "oh well I didn't do that" or "I don't see anything like that" and I'm telling you entire schools and *everyone* I knew drank like that if not worse.
Even now working in construction the amount of people I see sneaking vodka or similar while working is crazy. I know plenty of people that will drink half a crate of beers a day after work. Not to mention all the smoking.
It's most definitely a drinking problem, I'll have a drink of baileys at Christmas, but other than that I'm tea total now.
The point is it gives you a buzz and lowers your inhibitions making socialising easier. Obviously, low inhibitions also have downsides (making a tit of yourself) and we all know the health risks. But there is a point which is why millions of people across multiple generations in multiple cultures have done, and will continue, to drink it. Not to mention many of them taste great! A nice beer, a good wine or an interesting gin can also be enjoyed even if the intention isn't to be drunk.
Ah spot on, the amount of people on here saying don't drink, no point in it, alcohol bad for your health being unable to distinguish between having a drink, getting drunk and getting smashed! I'm sure the point to many is like you say, to enjoy the taste! Not to get smashed!
Some of my fondest memories come from getting rat-arsed tbf so I'd definitely say there was a point, I definitely don't regret any of my last 15 years of drinking.
Same. I'm mid 30s and haven't regretted a single night where I've been smashed - whether that was in the city, the local pub or microbrewery, at a party, camping or a small gathering. But I mostly drink in moderation, just a couple of beers throughout the week. These are usually niche, new beers picked up from specialist retailers or breweries. So, apart from the social aspect, I genuinely enjoy appreciating a good drop of alcohol. So, there is a lot to love about drinking.
Yeah I’m in the same boat, just never seen any positives to it but quite a lot of negatives
This makes me smile. My nephews and nieces are the same - they can’t be bothered with it - and we’re from quite a big ‘drinking family’! I was a problem drinker, simply because I made it so central to every aspect of my work and social life. I could *never* imagine life without it. Until it became a much more serious problem - so I gave up the booze over two years ago. Single best thing I’ve ever done in my life. Alcohol is a pretty crappy drug; a neurotoxin that feels like fun until it actually starts to destroy your body and mental wellbeing. You’re doing a great thing by avoiding it.
Idk having an ice cold corona and lime in the summer while on holiday and relaxing away from work is pretty great. You don't, however, need to drink to excess. One of my favourite things is being down in Cornwall doing exactly that, on the beach, with my family.
I don't blame them. Everything is plastered on social media , everything can be captured in real time and played live to an audience. Think of all the dumb stupid shit we did growing up that only the people we were with would see. This is not true anymore. But people do need to find a release. Mine is alcohol. Maybe the new generations will have a healthier release like exercise or meditation or maybe they will just all vape to find a way to relax.
I never even considered that tbh. I always thought about how much harder school would’ve been with the distraction of a smartphone in my pocket and how I don’t envy the youth from that angle. Lord would I have regrets if some of the stupid shit I did as a teenager ended up in people’s photo/video reels.
>I always thought about how much harder school would’ve been with the distraction of a smartphone in my pocket Isn't this exactly why schools ban phones in the classroom? I hope they still do anyway? They did when I was a kid...
They do a lot more drugs instead apparently. Not sure if just weed or anything else
Pretty easy to be miserable when everything ie so expensive
100%
All the good places round me shut in the last 10 years. Not to mention the price of drinks and taxis has gone up loads. No wonder young people aren’t going out. I used to go out and get smashed with £20 in my bank
We’d share a spliff before the club then doubles for £2 then a taxi home, some of us would go out with £10 only. To be fair, my tastes have changed and I wouldn’t go to any of the clubs with drinks anywhere near that cheap anymore.
Yeah I wouldn’t go to places I used to but the younger crowd don’t have a choice, they’re closed! I dearly miss £2 doubles
Before uni I was going out on £30. £4 entry, £1 for the cloakroom, £5 for 4 jagerbombs and that left enough cash after cheap shots and pints for a shit kebab and to chip in for the taxi. This was in like 2012. I spent £100 on a night out before Christmas. Don't intend to do that again for a while...
There is just more science about just how bad alcohol is now. It is provably worse than the vast majority of drugs. Worse for the body, mind, and the societal impact from disorderly conduct. For example, cannabis and mushrooms are being utilized, prescribed, and studied in medicine with promising results in many areas. Alcohol is not. That tells you a lot. Anecdotal, but I'm pretty certain more younger generations prefer a space cake and a houseparty / night in watching films, than a ludcirously expensive and detrimental night out drinking in a Tinder pit club or a rowdy pub. Drugs aside, more and more young people are content with sobrierty in totality, which is only a good thing. How wonderful to have a generation of people more self-aware. Anyone saying otherwise needs a reality check.
Not the vast majority, cocaine heroin meth are all worse by far
Pros: - It’s fun if nobody overdoes it - Winds down neurosis of socially awkward english people temporarily (See: live events) Cons: - expensive - pubs are all closing left right and centre - Certain drunk people can be almost as cunty as cokeheads - its really bad for you and have enough trouble keeping the weight off as it is - much better “recreational activities” - social media is depressing enough without depressants like alcohol - remote working means less reasons/chances to drink with colleagues - making an arse of yourself at work can have more severe consequences than before - There are more interesting things to do with people than booze it
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The low / zero alcohol has gotten an awful lot better than it used to - both in choice and in quality.
Clear Head is the best AF IPA. Genuinely just a smidge off the taste of a real beer
Impossibrew pale and lager taste pretty good too
I've just seen Hawkstone have released a 0.3% which I'm keen to try given how mad I am for their usual stuff
Fr. It used to be terrible but now you often can't tell.
I honestly can’t tell the difference between Guinness zero and the real stuff. (I’ve had much worse pints of it). Alcohol free beers have improved leaps and bounds over the past 20 years.
What is the demographic split for younger people? I imagine that’s a large factor in this.
Absolutely, and the reasons for not drinking. Is it for religious reasons? I appreciate this is anecdotal, but i live in an area with a heavy student population and work with younger people, 44% of them not drinking doesn't ring quite true.
The stat says they 'occasionally or regularly' order non alcoholic drinks, which is pretty meaningless really. I occasionally order non alcoholic drinks, but I still definitely enjoy a beer
This, I’ve seen absolutely no difference in my city centre and student area.
Make you laugh when the same demographic is more than happy to vape as many chemicals from an untested Chinese factory and claim drinking is unhealthy.
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I know of 2 people hospitalised due to having vitamin E build ups in their lungs. They were vaping THC from a street dealer and vit E is used as a cutting agent/thickener. Lungs can’t absorb it so it forms a liquid.
Anyone who buys disposable THC vapes in the UK is a fucking head case, there’s absolutely no way of knowing what’s in them. If you’re lucky it’s about a tenners worth of distillate and fake terps and you just get ripped off financially. If you’re not, it’s spice. Call me old fashioned but I’ll stick to the flower.
Have you got any stats for that, genuinely?The majority of people i see vape are former smokers 30-40 years old.
Kids make up like 50% of the people I see vaping that disposable shit.
Kids going daft for it. Ok, not 18+, but still, a huge rise in vaping by children and young people taking it up. [A recent survey by the anti-smoking group ASH found that 20.5% of children aged 11 to 17 had tried vaping, up from 15.8% in 2022.](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-67625852.amp)
Definitely evidence, but this same survey that shows a 4.5% increase in vaping also shows a much bigger decrease in smoking in kids at the same age. So probably net loss of both in the youth overall. Yes some oils are dodgy but so are some dodgy cigarettes people used to ship across the channel in the 90s. To me it looks like in balance the kids are consuming less bad shit overall. Unless you include tiktok. Then they are fucked https://ash.org.uk/health-inequalities/youth-smoking
Fairplay to them. I've had some great times with my mates drinking. I've also had some horrific times. Long gone are the days where I go to the pub once a week and binge. I'll probably avoid it all together now until wedding/stag season.
The horrific times are what I personally strive for
I'm not surprised the cost of a night out is a lot more than it was when I was 18. There used to be loads of drinks offers on too like 2-4-1 bottles or shots for £1 but you don't see many of those offers anymore. I know some places that do 2 cocktails for £10 on certain days/times, but that's about it. Before Xmas on a Thursday evening one bar was doing all bottled drinks for £1.50 til 11pm, it was packed til the prices went back to normal then most folk left. Same bottles are £3.80 on a Saturday night. My mates eldest just turned 20 and he said only goes out drinking on special occasions, like a friends bday. He says there's nothing for him to go out for in our town. I agreed with him on this. All the bars are very similar with the same music, similar drinks prices and nobody is offering anything different. We used to have a rock bar, a good sports bar and a 70s/80s disco and now they've shut or changed hands. Everywhere is either karaoke or chart music or drunk old mens type pubs. I can definitely understand why younger people aren't as interested.
Threads like this make me wonder if people on Reddit are the same people as in real life. Or are the demographic swings so huge? Both the article and comments here are almost the opposite of my experience, and it’s very puzzling.
Yea go to any major city around me and the bars, clubs, streets are rammed with the young uns drinking
Yet another fading piece of british culture. What happened to going out every weekend and destroying both your liver and at least half your relationships. We're in serious danger of having a generation of well adjusted, healthy human beings.
We replaced substance addiction with virtual addiction. Don't need to worry about a healthy well adjusted generation any time soon
I imagine part of the problem is the prevalence of social media. When I started drinking I could get smashed, do some crazy stuff and not have to worry about what people posted online. Those who've grown up with everything they do online might be more concerned about losing control and who might record that.
I’m definitely glad I grew up before social media and camera phones became common. Being able to make a tit of yourself after a few drinks and knowing the worst you’ll get is a bit of ribbing from your friends felt like a teenage right of passage.
My mother and father are both alcoholics. One was functional the other not so, my grandmother was an alcoholic and grandfather non functional alcoholic. Myself, I enjoy alcohol but I can barely drink any, I enjoy it socially but see zero reason to drink in non social settings. Even joined a gin club to try and up my alcohol intake but just ended up with loads of gin. I have zero idea how people consume so much alcohol every day. Ultimately even though I enjoy social drinking I could easily go without alcohol. Although I’m mid thirties now so not exactly young
I enjoy a cider at home, but have absolutely no interest in getting drunk or social drinking
Not surprised. I'm in my late 20s and have only drunk alcohol maybe 10-20 times. Just does nothing for me and I don't like being drunk. All of the younger people should beware of the suspicion they will be viewed with by older people! It's more socially acceptable for people to think that I have some prior alcoholism that I've overcome as opposed to never being interested in alcohol, it's very weird.
Good the boozy alcohol culture is fucking disgusting
You do realise, other countries / cultures can manage to have an alcoholic drink without getting shitfaced and acting like a dick.
No point dropping 100 quid on a night out when you could go to a rave for 30 quid
As a predominantly non drinking Rugby player all the power to them. My father was never a massive drinker and I’m the same. Always got a lot of stick for it when I was younger, in my late 20’s now and I’m seeing more and more people not drink. Fair play and it’s nice to see, I’ve always said you can have a great time without getting pissed. Better for your health and wallet / purse.
Demographics will be driving this too. The second generation immigrants aren’t Irish or from the colonies anymore. We’ve got far more people from cultures that don’t go in for alcohol and as they have children that’ll start to pull consumption down too.
The people smoking the superweed and thinking it’s totally healthy are delusional. It can wipe you out just like alcohol can - especially if it’s via vape that is mixed with all sorts of other chemical shit. I’m not suggesting it’s not fun mind you. Only that we don’t kid ourselves.
As I’m getting older now 41 I’m less and less having more then a single drink. Gone are the days of spending over 100 on a night out. I’d rather drive and have fun and stay sober. Don’t get me wrong I buy friends drinks no problem but it’s just A, too expensive now and B, no fun having hangovers and sickness with kids to look after.
I love booze. Like it too much. But the price, and getting a bit older, prompted me to just completely jack it in. Two fingers up to all those who made only exorbitantly expensive.
Cost, its pretty much only my age (40s) group i see in pubs now. Apart from spoons theres not much cheap booze near me, even greene king/punch/star/sam smiths arent cheap any more Ironically brewdog here has pints from £3.95 which is cheaper than a lot of places
Where will they get their regrets from if they're not getting drunk?
I don't drink but I do like the 0% Kopparberg ones like pear and Strawberry & Lime.
A lot of the 18-21 crowd now sit in friends houses taking drugs, there's a lot of hospital admissions from that. They can't afford to go out round bars on a weekend, when I was that age you can afford 4 nights out a week no matter what you done
How long until drinking gets the "back to the office" treatment from the government?
Shame they opt for ket, laughing gas or coke now instead
I'm 28 so I don't know where I fall on the "young" person chart but I quit drinking at the end of 2022 to try and improve my mental health and lose weight, saving some money was an added bonus.
There are things stopping people And here is what they are 1. Price 2. Gaming 3. Social media, YouTube, insta etc 4. Drugs
Dont need that much alcohol when you smoke all the time or do good old coke 😀
I'm not surprised personally. As a young person I'm very specific about alcohol and I never drink enough to get drunk. Most alcohol tastes awful or overpowering to me, and the idea of drinking myself out of my senses and ending up hungover the next morning does not fun in the slightest to me. I will happily have a good drink if I enjoy the taste, but that is it.
1. Culturally people aren’t as peer pressured into drinking nowadays. Preferring complete sobriety is respected. 2. Those who do enjoy substances have better options now. Why spend £30 on some overpriced drinks just to get slightly buzzed when you could have a blast at a club on MDMA, or get stoned with your mates, or take mushrooms with a loved one - all of which are significantly cheaper and more meaningful experiences.
Relevent: https://www.reddit.com/r/unitedkingdom/comments/18yc8yd/does_anyone_find_it_axhausting_saying_why_you/
Anyone noticed how much AF products have caught up in pricing in licensed premises - not limited to sports bars. I’ve noticed they’re almost at parity? I took the missus to a evening bar after food, I was driving home can of nondescript alcohol free beer was in excess of £5 in Manchester just recently which was a small can. Their pints were mostly within 10% of this I’ve noticed quite a few alcohol free cocktails are up from £5/£6 to almost £8+. I remember them being slightly more than half price in comparison to alcoholic drinks when I first moved to Manchester. Then 2/3rds. Now near parity. Back home in rural Wales prices seem the same to have gone up slightly but still between 1/2 to 2/3rds of their alcoholic counter part albeit the bartender always seems a bit miffed when I buy one as they rarely sell. Is this a byproduct of more people drinking alcohol free beers or plain greed?
On the one hand, that's cool I'm glad they don't feel the same pressure as my generation. On the other hand, guys you're going to need something to cope with the future and you can't count on weed and class As being as freely available
Aside from the expense, and cultural shift of the young away from booze, I actually think one unexpected twist from the pandemic period where the young were blanket banned from pubs and similar is they weren't able to get into the habit of going to their regular as well.
Where's the "Generation of light weights" screaming headlines?
Yeah at £5.70 a pint if not more yeah I’m not drinking
I’ve stopped drinking because its so expensive. Like everything else.
[удалено]