Young Australians are drinking about 50 per cent less alcohol than people the same age 10 years ago, new research shows.

Data from population surveys was used to analyse the drinking habits of more than 124,440 Australians aged 14 to 79 who were surveyed over 18 years.

The study was led by Dr Michael Livingston from the Centre for Alcohol Policy Research at Melbourne's La Trobe University.

Dr Livingston said Australians who are in their teens or early 20s were drinking much less than previous generations.

"If we talk about … 14 to 17-year-olds, in 2001 about two-thirds of those reported drinking at all. That's down to 40 per cent," he told 774 ABC Melbourne's Jon Faine.

"We're seeing both a decline in the choice to drink, and amongst those who do choose to drink, a decline in the amount they drink.

"It's something like, on average, about half as much alcohol consumed by teenagers as there was 10 years ago."

While alcohol has been the target of public health campaigns in Australia, Dr Livingston said the trend was evident across the world.

"We're seeing these results in other countries like Sweden, like the UK — countries with different patterns and cultures," he said.

Illicit drug use is down, too, which shows young people are not simply switching from one vice to another.

"That was the first thing we looked at. It is, in fact, the opposite," Dr Livingston said.

"There's less drug use, there's less drinking, there's less smoking. It's a broad shift towards more responsible, less risky behaviour."

Changes in socialising could be a factor

The reason why young people are drinking less remains unclear.

Dr Livingston said changes in socialising could be a factor, but there was no strong evidence to support the theory at this stage.

"My favourite theory of the many is that it is something to do with the way interaction has changed," he said.

"This is a cohort of young people who have grown up embedded in online interactions … the way they're meeting each other, the way they interact with each other is quite different to previous generations.

"Alcohol, especially in young people, is very much about socialising.

"We don't have good evidence — this is me just spouting off — but it seems that it fits the data … possibly the internet is part of that story."

The study was published in the scientific journal Addiction.