More Than Half of Wisconsin Counties Land on Drunkest Counties in the U.S.

Tuesday, October 19th, 2021 -- 11:00 AM

(WMTV) More than half of Wisconsin counties landed on a recently published list of the “drunkest” counties in the United States.

In fact, the Badger State had over four times as many counties listed in the Top 50 (41) than all other states combined. Going down the list, Badger State counties filled the top 11 spots on the list and 90% of the top 30 counties.

The survey, conducted by 24/7 Wall St., ranked each county by their excessive drinking rates, which included adults who either binge drink or drink heavily.

It defined binge drinking as four drinks for women or five drinks for men in a single session, while an average of a drink a day for women or two per day for men is considered heavy drinking.

Using those metrics, the author found 41 Wisconsin counties placed in the top 50 of the 3,143 counties (or their equivalent) in the United States. It based its rankings on the County Health Rankings and Roadmaps, which the site was compiled by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute.

The report estimated 95,000 people in America die every year from diseases and accidents related to alcohol abuse and that excessive drinking drains billions of dollars out of the economy.

However, it also states that most people who drink excessively may not have a severe alcohol disorder. The full top 50 is listed here. The author noted that in every one of them at least 1 in 4 people reported excessive drinking.

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