Heavy drinking among veterans aged 35 to 49 was the exception, rising significantly while the surrounding trend improved, as reported by Military.com. Binge drinking refers to consuming enough alcohol on a single occasion to raise blood alcohol concentration to a risky level. The researchers also found a graded relationship between poor mental health and heavy drinking, meaning the more days of poor mental health a veteran reported, the higher the likelihood of heavy drinking. Binge drinking declined among veterans overall between 2016 and 2024, while heavy drinking rose significantly among veterans aged 35 to 49, from 7.4 percent to 9.6 percent. Heavy drinking declined among women veterans, from 8.5 percent to 6.3 percent, narrowing a longstanding gap between the sexes.