Less than half of the adults across the country drank alcohol every week last year, but those living in Quebec reported the most frequent drinking habits, as well as those who worked in the trades or the arts.
According to data from the Canadian Community Health Survey and Statistics Canada, 77% of Canadian adults reported drinking at least one alcoholic beverage over the entire 2023 year.
When asked if they had consumed alcohol in the last seven days, 54% reported that they hadn’t, while 15% said they had one to two standard alcoholic drinks.
Another cohort of 15% reported drinking three to six drinks over the last seven days; the final cohort of 15% said they had consumed at least seven or more drinks over that period.
The Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction released Canada’s Guidance on Alcohol and Health last year, which offered Canadians informed recommendations on alcohol consumption.
The guide categorizes four different risk zones based on the number of standard alcoholic drinks one consumes weekly.
- 0 drinks per week — Not drinking has benefits, such as better health, and better sleep.
- 2 standard drinks or less per week — You are likely to avoid alcohol-related consequences for yourself or others at this level.
- 3–6 standard drinks per week — Your risk of developing several types of cancer, including breast and colon cancer, increases at this level.
- 7 standard drinks or more per week — Your risk of heart disease or stroke increases significantly at this level.
According to the guide, “each additional standard drink radically increases the risk of alcohol-related consequences.”
Statistics Canada said that previous data revealed that males drink more alcohol compared to females and that alcohol affects the two genders differently.
“Females generally absorb alcohol faster than males, which can lead to higher blood alcohol levels for the same amount of alcohol consumed,” reads the Statistics Canada report.
“In 2023, nearly twice as many men (20%) as women (11%) reported drinking seven or more drinks in the past seven days, which is the level of alcohol consumption linked to the highest risk of alcohol-related harms.”
Of the cohort who reported drinking one to two drinks in the past seven days, men and women were similar, at 15% and 16%, respectively.
Those figures remained unchanged for men and women who reported drinking three to six drinks in the past seven days.
However, when it came to abstinence, more women, 59%, reported drinking zero alcohol in the past seven days, compared to men at 49%.
Age played a factor as Canadians between 18 and 22 reported the highest levels of not drinking any alcohol in the past week at 67%, compared to those in all other age groups which ranged from 51% to 57%.
That age group was also the least likely to consume seven or more alcoholic drinks in the past seven days at 8%, compared with other age groups which varied from 14% to 17%.
Provincially, Quebec residents reported drinking seven or more drinks in the past seven days at 18%, higher than the national average of 15% in 2023.
Those living in New Brunswick drank the least over seven days at 12%, followed by Ontario (14%), Saskatchewan (13%) and Alberta (14%).
Additionally, Quebec residents reported the lowest figure of not drinking any alcohol for the past seven days at 47%, compared with the national average of 54%.
Residents of Newfoundland and Labrador reported the highest number of zero alcohol consumed in seven days (58%), followed by New Brunswick (60%), Ontario (58%), Manitoba (57%), Saskatchewan (59%) and Alberta (57%).
One in five (19%) of Canada’s rural residents reported drinking seven or more drinks in the past seven days, which was higher than the 14% of those living in urban areas.
The CCHS survey also found a link between higher income and increased drinking, which is consistent with previous findings, with a higher likelihood among those more affluent.
When broken down by occupation, those working in trades, transport and equipment operation were the most likely to drink at 23%, followed by 22% of people working in arts, culture, recreation and sports.
Only 10% of people working in health occupations reported drinking seven or more drinks in the past seven days, which was the lowest of any occupation category.