Wisconsinites Tend to Take Pride in Drinking Culture, But Numbers Prove it's Slowly Killing Them

Saturday, August 5th, 2023 -- 10:00 AM

(By Sarah Eichstadt and Anupras Mohapatra | Wisconsin Watch) Blanketing the wall of an American-style dive bar in Prague: the Milwaukee Brewers, the Tavern League of Wisconsin and the iconic phrase "Drink Wisconsibly."

According to Sarah Eichstadt and Anupras Mohapatra with Wisconsin Watch, not only does Wisconsin consistently rank among the U.S. states with the highest excessive drinking rates, its high alcohol consumption draws global recognition. While many Wisconsinites take pride in this reputation, alcohol is taking lives at unprecedented rates in the state.

In 2020, Wisconsinites died from alcohol-induced causes at a rate nearly 25 percent higher than the national rate. The rate tripled from 6.7 to 18.5 per 100,000 from 1999 to 2020. Wisconsin is "locked in this weird death grip with alcohol," said John Eich, director of the Wisconsin Office of Rural Health. "There’s a cultural level of acceptance of excessive drinking."

Despite challenges, some are pushing back against permissive drinking laws and culture. After a drunk driver killed her son in 2018, Sheila Lockwood started lobbying to reform laws in Illinois, Iowa and Wisconsin.

"I don’t know what else to do with the pain other than trying to change something," Lockwood said. "If I can help somebody from going through this, then you just turn your pain into some sort of change."

About 65 percent of Wisconsin’s adults reported having at least one drink over the previous 30 days, far above the 55 percent national estimate, according to 2019 federal survey data. But binge drinking inflicts most alcohol-related harm, said Maureen Busalacchi, director of the Wisconsin Alcohol Policy Project, part of the Comprehensive Injury Center at the Medical College of Wisconsin.

Binge drinking consists of four to five alcohol servings over two hours. Any alcohol consumed by underaged and pregnant people is excessive, and heavy drinking involves one to two drinks daily, Busalacchi said.

"While it doesn’t sound like a lot, it definitely raises your risk for all kinds of issues, including cancer, and if you need to drink every day, you probably should talk to somebody," Busalacchi said. About one-third of Wisconsin adults in 2019 reported binge drinking in the previous month, more than any state except for North Dakota.

That thirst has proved deadly. Wisconsin experienced 1,077 alcohol-induced deaths in 2020, up from 865 in 2019, a Wisconsin Policy Forum report found. The tally included deaths from poisoning and certain liver, digestive and neurological diseases. It excluded accidents, falls, cancers and suicide.

The nearly 25 percent increase was the biggest one-year jump in two decades. The COVID-19 pandemic may have fueled the deadly trend, as people already facing an alcohol use disorder stayed home and drank more, Busalacchi suggested.

"Maybe healthcare wasn’t accessible. We’re not sure of all the reasons," she said. But alcohol killed a growing number of Wisconsinites even before the pandemic. From 2000 to 2010, statewide alcohol-induced deaths increased by nearly 27 percent before more than doubling over the next decade.

Nearly two-thirds of the 2010-to-2020 surge predated the pandemic, according to the Wisconsin Policy Forum. All age groups experienced more alcohol-induced deaths over the time period. Meanwhile, liver disease has increasingly affected younger people, particularly women.

Feel free to contact us with questions and/or comments.