"Alcohol use becomes more common with increasing age with 76% of 17-year-olds having consumed alcohol in the year preceding the survey, compared to 19% of 12-year-olds.
"Only 32% of all students reported never consuming alcohol.
"Students who drank alcohol in the preceding week were classified as ‘current drinkers’. The proportion of current drinkers increased with age (p<0.01) and peaked among 17-year-olds at 35% for males and 37% for females.
"Sex differences in the prevalence of alcohol consumption in the past year were evident in the 12-, 13- and 15-year-olds. Among 15-year-olds, females were more likely than males to have consumed alcohol in the past year (p<0.01). Twelve and 13-year-old males were more likely than same aged females to have consumed alcohol in the past year (p<0.01).
"The percentage of all students who consumed five or more drinks on one occasion in the past week increased from two per cent of 14-year-olds to 17% of 17-year-olds. More males than females drank at risky levels at age 12, 15, 16 and 17 (p<0.01)."
White, Victoria and Williams, Tahlia, "Australian secondary school students’ use of tobacco, alcohol, and over-the-counter and illicit substances in 2014" (Oct. 2016), Prepared for the Drug Strategy Branch, Australian Government Department of Health, by the Centre for Behavioural Research in Cancer at The Cancer Council Victoria, p. 55.
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