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Americans’ self-reported drinking is at the lowest level since 1939

Rates of alcohol consumption in the US are slumping as health concerns mount, a new Gallup poll finds.

8/14/25 10:43AM

As the state of US healthcare morphs at a rapid clip, more Americans are wrestling with the physical risks of one of the nation’s most storied pastimes: drinking.

The share of adults in the US that report consuming alcohol has fallen to 54% in 2025, according to a new Gallup survey released Wednesday. That marks the lowest share the survey has ever recorded, with at least 60% of respondents from 1997 to 2023 reporting drinking.

One factor driving the trend of alcohol abstinence is that attitudes toward the health effects of drinking have shifted dramatically. For the first time in the survey’s history, a majority of Americans (53%) now view drinking in moderation as unhealthy, while the share of those who considered it good for one’s health is at a record low of 6%.

Though alcohol may be a notable gap in the “Make America Healthy Again” agenda, new research outlining the risks associated with both excessive and moderate alcohol use — including a landmark report from the US surgeon general in January — has helped turn the tide on casual drinking for many in recent times.

Gen Zero

The same survey also found that young adults were more likely to consider moderate drinking as harmful, with two-thirds of 18- to 34-year-olds now agreeing that it’s bad for health.

While this is consistent with a broad decline in alcohol use among young people, there’s still evidence to suggest that Gen Z might indulge in a drink or two despite the detrimental effects.

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The BBC has become the world’s top news website... by collapsing a little less than its competition

Press Gazette just published its annual look at the biggest news sites in the world across all languages; for the most part, it doesn’t make for particularly pretty reading.

The journalism industry publication’s latest update, which is based on estimates provided by Similarweb for May, found that 37 of the world’s 50 most visited news sites saw their reach shrink. Press Gazette highlighted that American outlets have been hit particularly hard by declining Google traffic compared to European counterparts, owing to the platform’s AI features rolling out earlier in the US.

Even the BBC, having climbed the rankings from last year to top the 2026 chart — reportedly in part thanks to Similarweb’s decision to combine the “.co.uk” and “.com” versions of the URL, given that the sites redirect to each other depending on the user’s location — showed a 1.9% decline from last year.

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Last night’s Tony Awards were a curtain call for a record-smashing season on Broadway

This year’s star-studded theater awards wrapped up the highest-grossing season Broadway’s ever seen.

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Kids these days are listening to more songs from the good old days

Music nostalgia is in full swing, and the younger listeners of today appear to be partying like it’s pre-1999.

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Drake whiffs on an expected No. 1 on Spotify

Drake started at the bottom and he’s here, but not quite at the top... of Spotify, at least.

It’s been nearly three weeks since Drake dropped his three surprise albums — “Iceman,” “Habibti,” and “Maid of Honour.” Heading into the month, prediction markets were rating it a near certainty, a 98% chance, that Drake’s sonic onslaught was enough to snag the No. 1 slot on Spotify at least once in June.

But, while he surpassed the late Michael Jackson and took up three slots on the Billboard album chart at once, his newly released songs haven’t quite cracked the popular music-streaming platform’s top charts, and market seem to think the moment has passed.

(Event contracts are offered through Robinhood Derivatives, LLC — probabilities referenced or sourced from KalshiEx LLC or ForecastEx LLC.)

Spotify’s “Top Songs - Global” chart currently show that Jackson’s “Billie Jean,” which is more than four decades old, Justin Bieber’s “Beauty and a Beat,” which climbed back to the top of Spotify charts following his Coachella set in the spring, Olivia Rodrigo’s new angsty love song “The Cure,” and BTS’s “Swim” are all ahead of Drake’s “STFU Janice” from his “Iceman” album.

While Spotify previously reported last month that Drake’s “Make Them Cry” was the most streamed album in a single day this year, that was later revealed to be a data error.

Prediction markets currently show traders are betting there’s only a 15% chance Drake will have a No. 1 song on Spotify in June.

Meanwhile, Taylor Swift is in the lead at 98% — a day before the release of her new original song “I Knew It, I Knew You,” which she wrote and performed for Disney and Pixar’s upcoming “Toy Story 5” — followed by Olivia Rodrigo, whose highly anticipated album “You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love” comes out next Friday.