Survey: Brown County Residents Binge Drink At Higher Rate Than State Average

Residents in Brown County binge drink at higher rates than people in other parts of the state, according to a lifestyles survey conducted by the county earlier this year.

In response to the county’s Behavior Risk Factor Surveillance Survey, 38 percent of residents said they’d had five or more drinks at one time in the last 30 days. According to Judy Friederichs, who directs Brown County Health, the groups that reported the highest rates of binge drinking were men and respondents between the ages of 18 and 24.

Friederichs said the findings about alcohol consumption in the survey weren’t all bad.

“Some of the promising news was that 37 percent of our county citizens didn’t have a drink over a 30-day period — didn’t report having one. And of those who drank, 64 percent had only one or two drinks maximum,” she said.

Friederichs said the county is currently looking at ways to curb excessive alcohol use with more responsible serving practices, including at summer festivals.