40 percent of Australian adults drink to get drunk: survey

Forty percent of Australian adults (or 4.5 million) drink to get drunk and an overwhelming majority of Australians believe more must be done to address alcohol-related harms, a latest survey showed on Thursday.

The survey, Annual Alcohol Poll 2013 by Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education, found 77 percent of Australian adults are drinkers. According to theresult, two in five Australians - and more than 60 percent of young adults - are drinking to get drunk.

While the poll showed an overall decline in the number of Australians drinking, a number of other indicators highlight that Australians continue to drink to excess.

The poll also included selected Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) questions which revealed that 23 percent of Australian drinkers had not been able to stop drinking once they started and 26 percent couldn't remember what had happened the night before.

The foundation's chief executive Michael Thorn said the survey findings highlighted the need for alcohol reform, such as increased liquor pricing and advertising ban.

"Governments around the country seem unwilling to take action, yet this poll again makes clear that Australians recognise that alcohol use results in devastating harms," he said.