It used to be that a lot of beer consumed a couple hundred years ago was in that 1-3% category, or at least that was my understanding from townsends:
https://youtu.be/nAZZGlK4E3Y?si=DUn7rhkpkHL-6K_AMy desire for the lower abv has to do with gut health, I guess above a certain abv the beneficial microbes from fermentation are killed off alongside the bad the ones.
Plus I just like beer and don't necessarily want to get buzzed from a couple.