CDC: College grads are 82 percent likelier to be "regular drinkers" than high school dropouts

Adults with a bachelor’s degree or higher are 81.9 percent more likely than those with less than a high school diploma to self-identify as “current regular drinkers”, according to the 2012 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), which found that regular alcohol consumption increases with higher levels of education. …

A “current regular drinker” was defined for the purposes of the study as someone who “had at least 12 drinks in his or her lifetime or in any 1 year AND had a drink 1-365 times in the past year.”

Just 35.3 percent of those with less than a high school diploma identified themselves as “current regular drinkers.” The percentage increased to 47.3 percent for those with a high school diploma or GED, and to 52.3 percent for those with some college.