# I'm 50 and drinking more than ever. Is there a potential problem?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-50-and-drinking-more-than-ever-is-there-a-potential-problem/451360>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [June 1, 2008, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-50-and-drinking-more-than-ever-is-there-a-potential-problem/451360 "2008-06-01T16:14:41Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 4

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**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\
**Post date:** [June 6, 2008, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-50-and-drinking-more-than-ever-is-there-a-potential-problem/451360/61 "2008-06-06T12:56:14Z")

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[QUOTE=Plan B]  
I’m not looking to turn this into GD as the tone has been extremely supportive. But I looked all over the web for info on average age of onset and kept coming up with numbers in the early 20s. Doesn’t leave much room for later life onset. Even post # 42 cites “a man who drank way too much in his twenties.” If you have any cites about frequency of onset after age 50 I’d be interested - and won’t argue with whatever you cite.  
[/QUOTE]

> [@](#):
>
> Alcoholism in the Elderly  
> SALLY K. RIGLER, M.D.,  
> University of Kansas School of Medicine, Kansas City, Kansas  
> Alcohol abuse and alcoholism are common but underrecognized problems among older adults. **One third of older alcoholic persons develop a problem with alcohol in later life** , while the other two thirds grow older with the medical and psychosocial sequelae of early-onset alcoholism. (Am Fam Physician 2000;61:1710-6.)

[http://www.aafp.org/afp/20000315/1710.html](http://www.aafp.org/afp/20000315/1710.html)

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**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\
**Post date:** [June 6, 2008, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-50-and-drinking-more-than-ever-is-there-a-potential-problem/451360/62 "2008-06-06T15:16:20Z")

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One final thought. MM resommends that people keep a calendar to chart their drinking. I think it could be an interesting and useful exercise for just about anyone. If nothing else, it clearly lets you know if there are particular patterns to your drinking. Should you ever wish to cut-down or abstain, such info could be helpful. And if you are trying to moderate, the goal of marking down a certain number or indicating a day of abstinence might be the little extra incentive that helps you out.

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