For decades, Denmark and the UK have been known as countries where alcohol plays a big role in people’s social lives. In this way, the two countries make an interesting comparison when it comes to alcohol consumption because they both have a strong drinking culture.
For years, Denmark has appeared near the top of European rankings for teenage alcohol use, with Danish teenagers consistently reporting higher levels of drinking than their peers in much of Europe – including the UK.
Binge drinking has historically been a particular concern in the UK, especially among young adults. But drinking habits have changed substantially since the 2000s, with the proportion of UK adults who reported binge drinking in the previous week falling from around 18% in 2005 to 15% in 2013.
In England, around 21% of adults drank more than 14 units of alcohol per week in 2024. This is equivalent to roughly six pints of average-strength beer or seven standard (175ml) glasses of wine. Denmark shows similar drinking rates.
But while people in both countries often drink more than their European neighbours, teenage drinking has fallen over time in Denmark and the UK.
In both countries, teenagers now drink less alcohol than their parents did at the same age. And alcohol sales and overall consumption across the board have been on the decline since the early 2000s. So, if younger generations are drinking less, will alcohol-related health problems eventually decline too?
Alcohol-related disease
My research uses Denmark’s nationwide health registers to look at one of the most serious consequences of long-term heavy drinking: alcohol-related liver disease. This, in its most severe form, can cause life-threatening complications.
The number of new cases in Denmark reached a peak around 2009. Since then, cases have started to fall — and the reason appears to be linked to changing drinking habits between generations.
People born between 1945 and 1959, often called the baby boomer generation, have generally drunk more alcohol over their lifetimes than people born before or after. And when this large generation reached the age when alcohol-related liver disease is most commonly diagnosed (late 50s or early 60s), the number of cases peaked. This means that hospital figures today are partly a reflection of drinking habits from decades earlier.
Now, younger generations who grew up after the 1960s are reaching the same age. These generations appear to have drunk less over their lifetimes – so this is helping to bring down the number of new cases.
A similar pattern has been seen in the UK, where alcohol-related liver disease has increased over recent decades, but is now more commonly associated with older people with long histories of heavy drinking.
Will the trend continue?
In both countries, this decline does not really appear to be driven by targeted policy changes, such as taxation or restrictions. Rather, it seems linked to broader shifts in social norms — including changing workplace cultures around alcohol, and stricter attitudes towards drinking and driving.
At the same time, sales of alcohol-free beer have grown rapidly in both Denmark and the UK, suggesting rising demand for non-alcoholic alternatives.
The Danish National Health Survey, which regularly interviews a large sample of the Danish population, shows this decline clearly. Across most age groups, fewer people now say they usually drink more than 10 units of alcohol a week compared with when the survey began.
That said, among 16– to 24-year-olds, the number reporting higher weekly drinking was slightly up in 2025, compared with 2021. A similar small increase was seen among women aged 25-34.
However, the 2021 survey was carried out during the COVID pandemic, when people’s social lives and drinking habits were disrupted. So, it’s too early to know whether these small increases represent a real change, or simply a return to more normal drinking patterns after the pandemic.
The big question is whether people born in the 2000s will continue this long-term decline in drinking – or whether the trend will begin to level off, or even reverse. Generations often have a history of rebelling against their elders’ norms.
The UK appears to be facing a similar question. Teenage drinking has fallen sharply since the early 2000s, although the decline has slowed among young adult since the pandemic.
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Not wanting a ban
Of course, alcohol affects more than just the person drinking. It can shape family life, and influence the health of children growing up in households affected by alcohol problems.
My research shows that children of parents with alcohol-related liver disease are more likely to experience health problems themselves – including alcohol-related hospital admissions and poorer physical and mental health. Studies from the UK show similar patterns.
This is what makes alcohol such a complicated health issue. Unlike smoking, it is deeply connected to people’s social lives – and most people do not want to ban it outright.
The challenge, then, is not simply about getting everyone to drink less. It’s about understanding who is most at risk, how those risks change over time, and how to reduce the harm caused by alcohol.
The story of alcohol in Denmark and the UK is a story about changing generations. But while young people today are drinking less than their parents did, the health consequences of past drinking habits are still being felt.
This article is republished from The Conversation under a creative commons license. Read the original article here.
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