You're Actually More Likely to Drink When You're Happy Than Sad, New Study Finds

People tend to think that turning to the bottle usually happens when we are in a sour mood, but a new study shows the opposite is true.

A recent meta-analysis of 69 studies from the American Psychological Association (APA), which polled more than 12,000 people from the U.S., Canada, France, and Australia, showed no evidence to support the theory that people drink more when feeling down. In fact, people drink more (a lot more) when they are feeling happy.

The study showed that participants were six to 28 percent more likely to drink and 17 to 23 percent more likely to binge drink (having more than four or five drinks on an occasion) on good-mood days.

But drinking excessively, no matter your mood, is never a good idea. Harmful alcohol use represents one of the top four contributors to chronic diseases globally and the World Health Organization estimates that alcohol use is the cause of roughly five percent of all deaths worldwide annually. 

And while people may drink more when happy, that mood might not last long. Alcohol is a natural depressant. And, aside from that, there’s a potential hangover to worry about if you overindulge. Typical symptoms include fatigue, weakness, thirst, headache, muscle aches, nausea, stomach pain, vertigo, sensitivity to light and sound, anxiety, irritability, sweating, and increased blood pressure. And those feelings are anything but happy.