Gender Differences in Alcohol Use

In 2009 the National Survey on Drug Use and Health nearly 8.14 million 12-20 year old girls reported consuming alcohol in the past year.
In 2009, more males than females ages 12 to 20 reported past month alcohol consumption 29% to 26%
binge drinking 21% to 16%
heavy drinking 7% to 4%
However, among 12- to 17-year olds, the percentage of females who report drinking in the past month (14%) is almost the same as that of their male peers (15%).

Among college students: The 2009 Monitoring the Future Study 45% of college males report having consumed five or more drinks in a row during the previous two weeks compared with 31% of their female peers. This gender difference has slowed with both male and female binge drinking rates declining down 8 percent from 49% in 2007 among college males and down almost 14 percent from 36% in 2007 among female college students.