A survey of 2,292 Flemish adults, commissioned by the organisation Kom op tegen Kanker, reveals that 44% rarely or never drink alcohol: 18% never drink and 26% almost never. In the previous study, from 2022, that proportion was 36%.
Fewer people also believe myths about alcohol. The idea that drinking in moderation is good for the heart and blood vessels fell from 45% to 36%, and 34% still think that one glass a day does no harm, whereas in 2022 almost half of respondents did.
Nine in ten participants know that alcohol increases the risk of liver disease, and seven in ten recognise the risk of brain damage. Even so, half are unaware of the link with bowel cancer and 75% do not know that the same applies to breast cancer.
Social pressure to drink also appears to be easing: 58% feel little or no need to justify why they do not drink, and only 25% still feel it, compared with 31% in 2022. In addition, 59% have tried alcohol-free beer and 32% alcohol-free wine.
