ted States are light drinkers. About 35% abstain, 55% drink fewer that three alcoholic drinks a week, and only 11% consume an average of one ounce or more of alcohol a day" (American Psychiatric Association, 1994, p. 173). The prevalence of drinking is highest and abstention lowest for both females and males in the 21-34 age range. Males are two-to-five times more likely than are females to be heavy drinkers, regardless of age group. The prevalence of heavy drinking among adults decreases with age; "only 7% of males and 2% of females are considered heavy drinkers" among persons aged 65 years or older (p. 173). For all adults, "10% of drinkers consume 50% of the total alcohol consumed" (p. 173). Considering that 35 percent of adults in the United States abstain from alcohol consumption, thus, 6.5 percent of American adults consume 50 percent of all alcohol consumed, and most such individuals are males in the 21-34 age group.
Of particular interest with respect to FAS is alcohol con
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