SafeStep (UK) – Why women in their 40s, 50s and beyond are drinking more

Tier 2: Professional organization or credentialed expert guidance
Publisher: SafeStep (UK alcohol-harm reduction charity) · Published: August 1, 2026 · Accessed: August 21, 2026

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Claims this source supports

• One in three women report drinking MORE during perimenopause or menopause, based on a 2024 BJPsych Open survey.
• Of the women drinking more, roughly 70% cite anxiety, stress or depression as the reason; about a quarter were spending up to £50 per week on alcohol.
• Alcohol is a vasodilator, so it can intensify hot flushes and night sweats; it also fragments sleep and creates an anxiety rebound.
• Menopause care and alcohol services sit in different parts of the health system and do not routinely ask about each other, so women fall between the systems; the pattern can outlast the transition into postmenopause.