Only one study evaluated whether SRE values changed significantly as individuals aged (Schuckit and Smith, 2004), and none have determined how SRE scores at different times related to recent drinking characteristics and predicted future alcohol intake and problems. That prior study documented a 6% decrease in SRE values (an increase in LR per drink) over five years, reflecting a general increase in sensitivity to this depressant drug as people age (Kalant, 1998; Lynskey et al., 2003; Schuckit and Smith, 2004). However, no data were available regarding the relationships of the age-related alterations in SRE values to current or future drinking.
