Revealed: The generation drinking the most booze - as new data shows just one in 8 under 40s are heavy drinkers

The over-40s are the last generation of regular drinkers in Britain, new research shows. Data from nearly 1.7million people found that Britons' drinking habits diverged sharply around the age of 40. Those in mid-life drank more frequently and in larger quantities, the analysis showed. People in their 40s were 52 per cent more likely than under-40s to exceed government guidelines - consuming more than 14 units of alcohol a week, the equivalent of six glasses of wine.Just 12.6 per cent of those aged 18 to 39 drink above the recommended limit, compared with 19 per cent of people in their 40s, and 28 per cent aged 60 and above.The research is the latest addition to a growing body of evidence that suggests young people in Britain are drinking less than ever. Government data released in January revealed that almost a quarter of adults in England don't drink alcohol at all.And figures from the Office for National Statistics published in May showed deaths caused by alcohol have fallen to their lowest level since 2021 as sales of zero per cent beverages soar. Just 12.6 per cent of those aged 18 to 39 drink above the recommended limit, compared with 19.2 per cent of people in their 40s and 28.2 per cent aged 60 and above, new data showed The latest data, by the research firm Our Future Health, suggests affluence - as well as age - can play a role in how much Britons drink, however. Adults earning more than £100,000 were more likely to drink above recommended limits in every age bracket - with 25 per cent owning up to doing so regularly. More than nine in ten of the highest earners drank alcohol, compared with fewer than eight in ten of those earning £18,000 or less.Generations differed not just in whether they drank at all, but how regularly and how much they consumed. Nearly a quarter of adults under 40 said that they only drank on special occasions, compared with 13 per cent of those in their 60s. Fewer than two per cent of people in their 20s, meanwhile, drank daily or almost daily - rising to almost six per cent among those in their 40s, and almost 14 per cent of 60-somethings. Among those aged 80 and above, one in four admitted to drinking every or almost every day. Ros Blackwood, director of population health at Our Future Health, said the data offered insights into drinking habits on an unprecedented scale. Overall, the analysis revealed that almost nine in ten adults aged 18 to 39 drank within the recommended weekly limits set out by health officials - equivalent to around six pints of beer or six medium glasses of wine.The guidance describes this as 'low risk' rather than safe drinking because no level of alcohol consumption is considered risk-free. Younger Britons were also more likely to be teetotal than older adults - with 12 per cent of people in their 20s abstaining all together, compared with eight per cent of those in their 60s. Jem Roberts, from the Institute of Alcohol Studies, welcomed the decline in drinking among younger generations but raised concerns about rising alcohol-related deaths among older people.He told the Telegraph: 'Government needs evidence-based public health measures that support everyone drinking at harmful levels, not just the young.'That means action on cheap supermarket alcohol and rapid home delivery, both of which make it easier for people drinking heavily in isolation to do so unnoticed.'Dr Richard Piper, chief executive of the charity Alcohol Change UK, said: 'This is further encouraging evidence that cultural shifts around alcohol are possible, with younger generations drinking less often and at lower levels than those older than them. 'It’s also an important reminder that alcohol harm isn’t just a young person’s issue, with the data mirroring the trends we’ve been seeing in the Health Survey for England.'Consumption is more frequent and at more harmful levels among those in middle and later life, likely due to decades of pervasive and poorly regulated advertising by alcohol companies normalising alcohol and creating the notion it is essential to our lives.'Indeed, it looks like older age groups have something to learn from younger generations on this occasion.'The figures come months after industry data published earlier this year revealed pubs in Britain were closing at a record rate of two a day. The British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) says 161 pubs closed in the first three months of this year across England, Scotland and Wales, equating to the loss of around 2,400 jobs. The same data also showed sales of no- and low-alcohol beer, wines and spirits had soared 870 per cent since 2013, with nine in ten pubs now offering at least one zero per cent option.