Living near a bar increases your chance of drinking more, study says

A new study suggests that living near a bar could make you drink more alcohol.

Researchers in Finland found that those who lived near bars were 17 percent more likely to be heavy drinkers than those who did not.

The study looked at the habits of 55,000 adults in Finland over seven years.

They noticed that those people who moved within 0.6 miles or closer to a bar were substantially more likely to be a heavier drinker, said Reuters.

Indeed, of those who lived within 400 feet of a bar, nine percent were heavy drinkers, while among those who moved 1.5 miles away, only 7.5 percent were heavy drinkers.

The researchers were cautious in noting that the study did not prove causality, said ThinkProgress.

However, when income level and neighborhood choice were accounted for the findings still held true.

That said, it is difficult to know if the same would hold true in other countries given the difference in peoples' drinking habits.

The study was published in the journal Addiction.

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