AIM Alcohol is one of the leading contributors to the disease burden among young people. Drinking motives are one of the strongest factors influencing drinking behaviors among youth, yet we know little about reasons for why young people do not drink. The aim of the present study is to examine reasons for not drinking in a nationally representative sample of Swedish youth.

DATA AND METHODS Data from a survey of a nationally representative sample of students in year 9 (15-16 years old) was used. Data was collected in 2017 and the total sample comprise 5549 respondents. Ten items measured reasons not to drink alcohol. Comparisons were made between drinkers and nondrinkers in endorsement of the reasons for not drinking. A multivariable logistic regression model was fitted to examine the relative importance of the different reasons.

RESULTS That alcohol is bad for health and parents disapproval of drinking was the most commonly endorsed reasons both among drinkers and nondrinkers. The multivariable analysis showed that the strongest association with being a nondrinker was found for “Alcohol tastes horrible” (OR 2.995), “I have religious reasons for not drinking” (OR 2.775), “People who drink lose control in an unpleasant way” (OR 2.460) and “Drinking is too likely to lead to serious accidents” (OR 2.458).

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS Harm avoidance and religious reasons are the most important reasons not to drink among Swedish youth. Future research should examine how different reasons predict abstinence.