Binge drinking surges among Korean women in 30s

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For a working mother in her 30s using the pseudonym Lim Ji-hyun, alcohol began as a brief escape at the end of the day. After putting her child to sleep, she would pour one or two glasses of soju, a clear Korean liquor, treating the drink as a small reward after hours of work and child care. She felt pressure not to fail at work or home, and that pressure gradually pushed drinking from occasional comfort into a daily routine.

"I used to feel better when drinking," Lim said.

As the routine continued, her drinking increased. What began as a way to clear her mind turned into binge drinking, and mistakes followed. She forgot her child’s schedule and arrived late for work — lapses she had never before experienced. After her family urged her to seek medical care, Lim went to a hospital, received a diagnosis of liver cirrhosis and began inpatient treatment.

Drinking alone becomes routine

Her case reflects a broader shift that health experts say deserves more attention. A Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency report showed that the monthly binge-drinking rate among women in their 30s rose from 33.8 percent in 2015 to 42.1 percent in 2024. The increase of 8.3 percentage points marked the largest rise across all age and gender groups.

The pattern stands out because binge drinking has declined among their male counterparts. Over the same period, the binge-drinking rates among men in their 20s and 30s fell by 10.6 percentage points and 12.4 percentage points, respectively. Men’s rates remain higher overall, and men in their 40s recorded the highest rate at 65.3 percent, but the steep rise among women in their 30s has sharpened concern.

Several changes help explain why women in their 30s may be drinking more than before. More women have entered the workforce, drinking culture has changed and the stigma around women drinking has weakened. At the same time, traditional after-work company dinners have become less common, while drinking alone after work has become more accepted.

The practice is often called "hon-sul," a Korean term for drinking alone. Hon-sul has moved into everyday life as a private routine rather than a hidden habit. For some women, especially those balancing work and childcare, drinking alone at night offers an accessible way to unwind when time for other leisure activities is scarce.

Kim Kwang-kee, a professor at Inje University Graduate School of Public Health, links the trend to the pressure many younger adults face.

"Alcohol has become one of the easiest stress-relief tools available to people who feel they must keep going," Kim said. "The old stigma attached to women drinking alone has largely disappeared."

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Alcohol industry marketing has also helped shape the shift. Lee Eun-hee, a professor of consumer studies at Inha University, said companies have released low-alcohol drinks and mixed products that make alcohol feel lighter and less intimidating.

"These products fit the preferences of women in their 30s who see drinking less as a path to intoxication than as a way to relieve fatigue," Lee said.

Kim added that marketing aimed at women is not unique to Korea.

"The expansion of alcohol marketing targeting women is a global trend," Kim said.

Online short-form videos related to drinking alcohol record high view counts. Captured from YouTube

Social media has amplified that message. On YouTube, Instagram and other platforms, alcohol-related posts have turned drinking into part of lifestyle entertainment. Mukbang creators introduce new highballs, pair them with snacks and drink alone in videos that attract large audiences.

Alcohol companies also work with well-known YouTubers to promote new products.

"Women consumers tend to value engagement with brands and shared experiences through social media," a liquor marketing official at Lotte Chilsung Beverage said. "So we have been strengthening communication through digital content."

Online videos featuring prominent female celebrities drinking alcohol record high view counts. Captured from YouTube

From hidden kitchen drinking to open hon-sul

This marks a sharp contrast with an older term, “kitchen drinker.” The phrase once referred to women who secretly drank at home, including those who hid alcohol in kitchen cupboards. If the old term reflected shame and secrecy, today’s drinking alone reflects changed attitudes toward women drinking and a culture in which the practice appears more open and ordinary.

Experts warn, however, that treating drinking alone as harmless comfort can obscure the risk of dependence. Lee Kye-seong, director of Incheon Chamsarang Hospital, warns of the dangers of drinking alone.

"Because drinkers may focus more directly on alcohol’s effects, they could be vulnerable to alcohol dependence," Lee said.

Repeated drinking for temporary mood relief can build tolerance. As the same amount of alcohol produces less effect, drinkers may consume more, increasing the chance that a private stress-relief habit becomes harder to control.

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Park Woo-ri, director of KARF St. Mary’s Hospital, said binge drinking should not be reduced to a failure of self-control.

"Repeated drinking can change the brain’s reward pathways and stress-response systems, leading people to seek larger amounts to achieve the same effect," she said. "It should be seen as part of a disease process rather than a simple matter of willpower."

Higher risks from drinking

The threshold for binge drinking may also be lower than many people assume. For women, monthly binge drinking means consuming at least five glasses of soju, or three cans of beer, on a single occasion at least once a month over the past year. For men, the threshold is seven glasses of soju or five cans of beer.

Park said women are more vulnerable to drinking than men.

"Many people may meet those criteria through ordinary social drinking or company dinners," Park said. "Women can reach a higher blood alcohol concentration than men after drinking the same amount, and liver disease or cardiovascular complications can appear faster in women."

Choi Jae-hee, 31, said she came to understand alcohol’s risks after receiving a stage-three colon cancer diagnosis in May 2023. Before that, she drank three or four times a week to the point of blackout, but did not feel strong alarm.

"I never thought someone in their 20s or 30s could get that sick," Choi said.

Her diagnosis changed how she viewed the health risks of heavy drinking. After chemotherapy, she replaced alcohol with ballet and Pilates.

Experts say public awareness of binge-drinking risks needs to rise regardless of gender. Warnings about men’s heavy drinking have long existed because men traditionally drank heavily, while concern about rising binge-drinking rates among women has been relatively limited.

"Public campaigns should address women’s drinking more broadly, not only specific situations such as drinking during pregnancy," Kim said.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.