Four percent of young Czech don’t drink

Young Czech people like to drink, and statistics back this up. Among Czechs aged 18 to 30 only 4 percent are teetotalers, while 90 percent of young Czechs drink alcohol at least once a month, according to an Ipsos survey for liquor company Stock Plzeň - Božkov.

At least 72 percent of young Czechs drink beer, 65 percent wine. Mixed drinks, radlers (shandies) and beer mixers were consumed by 46 percent of young Czechs.

Hard alcohol not mixed in drinks (straight) is consumed by 38 percent of young Czechs. Some 19 percent prefer rum. Low-alcohol drinks and bitter herbal liqueurs are drunk by 15 percent of the respondents.

Young people in Prague are more likely to drink radlers, beer mixes and mixed hard alcohol, compared to the rest of the Czech Republic.

Two-thirds of young Czechs drink alcohol most often in the company of friends, followed by while eating in restaurants at 59 percent and at house parties at 56 percent.

Some 28 percent of respondents spend more than Kč 1,000 per month on alcohol, and 47 percent spend up to Kč 500 per month.

The survey was answered by 525 Czech respondents aged between 18 and 30.

The Czech State Health Institute (SZÚ) has long warned that alcohol consumption in the Czech Republic is high, and excessive consumption threatens health and the quality of life.

They are particularly concerned about how much experience the teenagers in the Czech Republic have with alcohol and about lax societal attitudes toward drinking alcohol.

An excess of alcohol, meaning more than three to four beers or half a liter of wine at one time, is drunk weekly or more often by one-fifth of adult males and 5 percent of adult females.

Some 13 percent of the population is high-risk consumers of alcohol, which can cause health damage, while 7 percent have an alcohol addiction. Alcohol accounts for about 4 to 5 percent of deaths.

On an international basis, the Czech Republic has the highest beer consumption per capita and has held that position for 23 years, as long as the independent Czech Republic has existed. Research by Japanese beer firm Kirin, using 2015 figures, showed Czechs drink 142.4 liters each per year. Tourism helps to contribute to the numbers, though.

Seychelles was second in beer consumption with 114.6 liters. Austria (104.7), Germany (104.7), Namibia (102.7), Poland (99.0), Ireland (97.5), Lithuania (97.1), Belize (94.7) and Romania (92.1) made up the top 10.

Europe and the former Soviet states lead the world in overall alcohol consumption, based on the amount of pure alcohol in spirits, wine, beer and other beverages. World Health Organization statistics, reported by Radio Free Europe, show that Lithuania comes out on top at 18.2 liters of alcohol per person every year. Belarus, Russia, and Moldova also come ahead of the Czech Republic, which ties with Romania at 13.7 liters per person for fifth place. South Korea is the highest scoring non-European country at 11.9 liters.