Americans are drinking less alcohol as they get older, and many are switching from beer and hard liquor to wine, a new report says.

Researchers at Boston University School of Medicine studied 8,600 white adults in Framingham, MA, over 50 years. The participants, born between 1900 to 1959, joined the study when they were at least 28 years old and answered questions about their lifestyle and health, including their alcohol use for the past few decades

The worsening alcoholism problem across the United Kingdom is reflected in the number of alcohol-related hospital admissions, which have doubled in 12 years.

According to the National Health Service, more than 200,000 drunk patients have been admitted to hospitals in just over a decade. This figure was made more alarming by the inclusion of 8,500 minors who were too drunk, were injured while in a drunken state, or acquired secondary ailments triggered by excessive alcohol intake

A new survey conducted by researchers at the University of Missouri observes a rise in alcoholism among American youth.

At least one-third of the men and one-fourth of the women covered in the survey engaged in the practice of imbibing 21 alcoholic drinks on their 21st birthday

More Britons are turning away from the deadly vices of smoking and drinking, according to the Office for National Statistics. The ONS said only 22 percent of Britons still lit, down from 27 percent in 1999. Another 66 percent said they want to give up the habit.

The growing global trend towards a healthier lifestyle is also reflected in the downward trend in alcohol consumption. On Monday, the JD Wetherspoon pub chain said it placed on hold its expansion plan because of a dip in sales of beer and wines, linking the drop to the smoking ban in public places

A nationwide French ban on lighting up in public places, originally passed in February, will expand coverage to include bars and dining establishments by January 2008.

The only places in French bars, restaurants, hotels and nightclubs where smokers may still indulge on their habit are designated outdoor seating areas. Bar owners and staff are up in arms against the smoking ban expansion, but the move has the support of 66 percent of French nationals