ALCOHOL CONSUMPTION AMONG FIRST AND SECOND-YEAR UNIVERSITY STUDENTS IN NOVI SAD

To estimate the prevalence of alcohol consumption and binge drinking during pregnancy among the general population in the World Health Organization (WHO) African Region, by country. First, a comprehensive systematic literature search was performed to identify all published and unpublished studies. Then, several meta-analyses, assuming a random-effects model, were conducted to estimate the prevalence of alcohol consumption and binge drinking during pregnancy among the general population for countries in the WHO African Region with two or more studies available. Lastly, for countries with less than two studies or no known data predictions were obtained using regression modelling. The estimated prevalence of alcohol consumption during pregnancy among the general population ranged from 2.2% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.6-2.8%; Equatorial Guinea) to 12.6% (95% CI: 9.9-15.4%; Cameroon) in Central Africa, 3.4% (95% CI: 2.6-4.3%; Seychelles) to 20.5% (95% CI: 16.4-24.7%; Uganda) in Eastern Africa, 5.7% (95% CI: 4.4-7.1%; Botswana) to 14.2% (95% CI: 11.1-17.3%; Namibia) in Southern Africa, 6.6% (95% CI: 5.0-8.3%; Mauritania) to 14.8% (95% CI: 11.6-17.9%; Sierra Leone) in Western Africa, and 4.3% (95% CI: 3.2-5.3%; Algeria) in Northern Africa. The high prevalence of alcohol consumption and binge drinking during pregnancy in some African countries calls for educational campaigns, screening and targeted interventions for women of childbearing age.

Binge drinking among adults, by select characteristics and state — United States, 2018

BackgroundExcessive alcohol use accounted for an estimated average of 23,000 deaths and 633,000 years of potential life lost (YPLL) among women and girls in the United States each year during 2001–2005. Binge drinking accounted for more than half of those deaths and YPLL. Binge drinking also is a risk factor for many health and social problems among women and girls, including unintended and alcohol-exposed pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, and breast cancer.MethodsTo describe the prevalence, frequency, and intensity of binge drinking (four or more drinks on an occasion in the last 30 days) among U.S. women aged ≥18 years, CDC analyzed data from the 2011 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. Data were also analyzed from the 2011 national Youth Risk Behavior Survey on the prevalence of current alcohol use (one or more drinks during the past 30 days) and binge drinking (five or more drinks in a row during the past 30 days) among U.S. high school girls in grades 9–12.ResultsAmong adult women, the prevalence of binge drinking was 12.5%, and among those who binge drank, the frequency of binge drinking was 3.2 episodes per month and the intensity was 5.7 drinks on occasion. Binge drinking was most prevalent among women aged 18–24 years (24.2%) and 25–34 years (19.9%), and among those from households with annual incomes of ≥$75,000 (16.0%). Among those who binge drank, women aged 18–24 years had the highest frequency (3.6 episodes) and intensity (6.4 drinks) of binge drinking. Among high school girls, the prevalence of current alcohol use was 37.9%, the prevalence of binge drinking was 19.8%, and the prevalence of binge drinking among girls who reported current alcohol use was 54.6%.ConclusionsBinge drinking is reported by one in eight U.S. adult women and one in five high school girls. Women who binge drink tend to do so frequently and with high intensity. Most high school girls who reported current alcohol use also reported binge drinking.Implications for Public Health PracticeMore widespread implementation of evidence-based interventions, such as those recommended by the Guide to Community Preventive Services and the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, would be expected to reduce the frequency and intensity, and ultimately the prevalence of binge drinking among women and girls, and the harms related to it.

Background: Young people represent a key population in the context of alcohol use, often experimenting with this substance. The aim of the study is to assess the association between peer influence and alcohol consumption and binge drinking among firstand second-year university students in Novi Sad. Methods and Objectives: The study was conducted as a cross-sectional study among students of the University of Novi Sad in 2019, as part of the project "Health behaviors of students: benefits and risk" funded by the Provincial Secretariat for Higher Education and Scientific Research. A total of 664 students participated (456 first-year and 208 second-year) from 13 faculties. An online questionnaire with electronic consent was distributed to students after lectures. Alcohol consumption was categorized based on daily alcohol unit consumption. The association between peer influence and alcohol consumption and binge drinking was analyzed using the Chi-square test. Results: Around 4% of students (3.8%) believe that, due to peer influence, they drink more alcohol than they would otherwise, with a higher prevalence among young men (7.0%) compared to girls (2.4%) (p<0.001). Among male students who said that they always drink more due to peer influence prevalence of heavy drinking (92.3%) and binge drinking (85.7%), was significantly higher than among students who said that friends don't influence their drinking (41.7% and 51.7%, respectively) (p<0.001). Also, female students who always drink more due to the influence of friends reported higher levels of heavy drinking (81.8%) and binge drinking (72.7%), compared to those who stated that peer influence does not affect their drinking habits (34.9% and 38.0%) (p<0.001). Conclusions: The findings of this study indicate that negative peer influence is associated with increased alcohol consumption and more frequent binge drinking among students in Novi Sad.

The aim of the study was to examine the association of alcohol consumption patterns (hazardous alcohol use and binge drinking) and the use of emergency services and primary care consultations in university students. An observational, descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted at eleven Spanish universities collaborating within the uniHcos Project. University students completed an online questionnaire that assessed hazardous alcohol use and binge drinking using the AUDIT questionnaire and evaluated the use of emergency services and primary care. A descriptive analysis of the data was performed, as well as the chi-squared test and Student’s t-test and nonconditional logistic regression models to examine this association. Results: There were 10,167 participants who completed the questionnaire. The prevalence of hazardous alcohol use was 16.9% (95% CI: 16.2–17.6), while the prevalence of binge drinking was 48.8% (95% CI: 47.9–49.8). There were significant differences in the use of emergency services in those surveyed with hazardous alcohol use (p < 0.001) or binge drinking pattern (p < 0.001). However, no significant differences were observed in terms of attendance during primary care visits in individuals with hazardous alcohol use (p = 0.367) or binge drinking pattern (p = 0.755). The current study shows the association between university students with a pattern of hazardous alcohol use or binge drinking and greater use of emergency services. However, no significant association was observed between the said consumption patterns and the use of primary care services.

We aim to investigate alcohol consumption patterns before and after the pandemic onset and utilize liver fibrosis measurements to identify at-risk drinking patterns. We selected 10 259 participants in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey across two cohorts: January 2017-March 2020 (pre-pandemic) and August 2021-August 2023 (during-pandemic). We employed the alcohol use questionnaire to identify drinking patterns, including heavy drinking and binge drinking frequencies. Vibration-controlled transient elastography was used to define stage 1 and significant liver fibrosis by liver stiffness measurement >7 to 9 and > 9kPa, respectively. We first compared the prevalence and frequencies of binge drinking and single day heavy drinking between the two cohorts. We then calculated the odds of liver fibrosis among during-pandemic participants with various alcohol use patterns, compared to pre-pandemic participants with the same use patterns. We found a higher prevalence of at-risk alcohol use in the during-pandemic cohort, including single-day heavy drinking and binge drinking at least once a month. Notably, the distributions of the frequency of single day heavy drinking and binge drinking were skewed towards a higher frequency of at-risk alcohol use in the during-pandemic group. Furthermore, the odds of significant liver fibrosis were higher among during-pandemic non-heavy/binge drinkers and heavy/binge drinkers, compared to their pre-pandemic counterparts. The data showed increases in heavy drinking and binge drinking in the during-pandemic cohort, which calls for urgent public health interventions to mitigate future adverse health impacts.

The Effect of Social and Stress-Related Factors on Alcohol Use Among College Students During the Covid-19 Pandemic

BackgroundBinge and heavy drinking are preventable causes of mortality and morbidity. Alcohol consumption by women who parent is damaging to child health, and it is concerning that women in the United States in their reproductive years have experienced increased drinking over the past decade. Although media attention has focused on the drinking status of women who are child-rearing, it remains unclear whether binge and heavy drinking vary by parenting status and sex.Methods and findingsWe examined national trends in binge drinking, defined as 5 or more drinks in a single day for men and 4 or more drinks for women, and heavy drinking, defined as 60 or more days with binge episodes in a year. We used survey-weighted logistic regression from the 2006–2018 waves of the cross-sectional National Health Interview Survey (NHIS, N = 239,944 eligible respondents) to study time trends in drinking outcomes by sex, age, and parenting status. Binge drinking increased for both sexes in nearly all age groups, with the largest increase among women ages 30–44 without children (from 21% reporting binge drinking in 2006 to 42% in 2018); the exception was young men (ages 18–29) with children, among whom binge drinking declined. By 2012, the prevalence of binge drinking among young men with children (38.5%) declined to below that of young women without children (39.2%) and stayed lower thereafter. Despite widespread increases in binge drinking, heavy drinking declined or remained stable for all groups except older women (ages 45–55) without children (odds ratio [OR] for heavy drinking each year = 1.06, 95% CI 1.02–1.10) and women ages 30–44, regardless of parenting status. For binge drinking outcomes only, we saw evidence of interaction in drinking trends by parenting status, but this was shown to be confounded by sex and age. Men and women with children reported consistently lower levels of drinking than those without children. Rates of abstention mirrored trends in binge outcomes for both sexes, limiting concerns about invariance. Study limitations include self-reported data and measurement invariance in binge drinking cutoffs across study years.ConclusionsThis study demonstrated that trends in binge and heavy drinking over time were not differential by parenting status for women; rather, declines and increases over time were mainly attributable to sex and age. Women both with and without children are increasing binge and heavy drinking; men, regardless of parenting status, and women without children consumed more alcohol than women with children. Regardless of impact on child health, increased drinking rates in the past decade are concerning for adult morbidity and mortality: binge drinking has increased among both sexes, and heavy drinking has increased among older women. Men and women of all ages and parenting status should be screened for heavy alcohol use and referred to specialty care as appropriate.

Purpose: Research shows conflicting findings for prevalence of alcohol use, binge drinking, and heavy drinking between veteran males and females, and as compared to civilians. The purpose of this study was to assess whether alcohol use, binge drinking, and heavy drinking differ by veteran and gender status in adults ages 25 and older in the general population. Methods: This cross-sectional analysis used 2015 data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) for males and females ages 25 and older in Alaska, Maine, Montana, Oregon, and South Carolina. Separate multiple logistic regression analyses by state were used to assess patterns in relationships between alcohol outcomes and veteran and gender status while controlling for demographic factors, depression, and tobacco use. Results: About half of male and female adults 25 and older reported alcohol use, and few reported binge drinking or heavy drinking. Across all states, both veteran and nonveteran males reported more alcohol use and binge drinking than female non-veterans. In addition, binge drinking and heavy drinking showed moderate to high relations to smoking in all 5 states. Conclusion: The results of adjusted analyses indicated that in all five states, alcohol use and binge drinking differed significantly by veteran and gender status. In addition, binge drinking and heavy drinking were significantly related to smoking in all 5 states. For adults ages 25 years and older in a primary care setting, providers may expect a moderate prevalence of alcohol use, and low prevalences of binge drinking, heavy drinking, and smoking. Standard of care is to automatically screen for alcohol use and tobacco use in all patients. However, if signs of either alcohol misuse or smoking are present, especially among males, providers should consider screening for alcohol misuse.

Recent trends in alcoholic liver disease, alcohol-related emergency room admissions, and alcohol use disorder prevalence as measured by general-population surveys have raised concerns about rising alcohol-related morbidity and mortality in the United States. In contrast, upward trends in per capita alcohol consumption have been comparatively modest. To resolve these discordant observations, we sought to examine trends in the prevalence of alcohol use and binge drinking from 6 regularly or periodically administered national surveys using a meta-analytic approach. Annual or periodic prevalence estimates for past-12-month or past-30-day alcohol use and binge drinking were estimated for available time points between the years 2000 and 2016. Estimates were combined in a random-effects regression model in which prevalence was modeled as a log-linear function of time to obtain meta-analytic trend estimates for the full population and by sex, race, age, and educational attainment. Meta-analysis-derived estimates of average annual percentage increase in the prevalence of alcohol use and binge drinking were 0.30% per year (95% CI: 0.22%, 0.38%) and 0.72% per year (95% CI: 0.46%, 0.98%), respectively. There was substantial between-survey heterogeneity among trend estimates, although there was notable consistency in the degree to which trends have impacted various demographic groups. For example, most surveys found that the changes in prevalence for alcohol use and binge drinking were large and positive for ages 50 to 64 and 65 and up, and smaller, negative, or nonsignificant for ages 18 to 29. Significant increases in the prevalence of alcohol use and of binge drinking over the past 10 to 15years were observed, but not for all demographic groups. However, the increase in binge drinking among middle-aged and older adults is substantial and may be driving increasing rates of alcohol-related morbidity and mortality.

Effectiveness of a Dutch community-based alcohol intervention: Changes in alcohol use of adolescents after 1 and 5 years

Prior research examining alcohol use using national data has often overlooked vital heterogeneity among Hispanics, especially that related to language dominance and gender. We examine the prevalence of alcohol abstinence and-given prior research suggesting that many Spanish dominant Hispanics do not drink-examine rates of binge drinking among past-year alcohol users with a focus on the intersections of language and gender among Hispanics, while drawing comparisons with non-Hispanic (NH) White and NH Black adults. Drawing from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health-a nationally representative survey between 2002 and 2018-we examine the year-by-year prevalence of alcohol abstinence and binge drinking among adults ages 18 and older in the United States. A disproportionate number of Spanish-dominant Hispanics abstain from alcohol use (54%), with particularly high levels of alcohol abstinence observed among Spanish dominant women (men: 39%, women: 67%). The prevalence of alcohol abstinence among English-dominant Hispanic men (24%) and women (32%) is far lower, approximating that of NH Whites (men: 23%, women: 32%). Importantly, however, among Spanish-dominant drinkers, the prevalence of binge drinking (men: 52%, women: 33%) is comparable to or greater than NH Whites (men: 42%, women: 32%). Binge drinking levels among English-dominant Hispanic men (50%) and women (37%) are greater than among their NH White counterparts. Findings paint a complex picture; consistent with prior research, we see that many Hispanics abstain from alcohol, but we also see new evidence underscoring that-among Hispanic drinkers-the prevalence of binge drinking is disconcertingly elevated.

IntroductionExcessive alcohol consumption leads to unfavourable outcomes in people living with HIV (PLHIV), including reduced adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) and engagement into care. However, there is limited information on alcohol consumption patterns among PLHIV in sub‐Saharan Africa.MethodsUsing a cross‐sectional approach, the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT‐C) was administered to PLHIV attending HIV clinics in Côte d'Ivoire, Togo, Senegal and Zambia (2013 to 2015). Hazardous drinking was defined as an AUDIT‐C score ≥4 for men or ≥3 for women, and binge drinking as ≥6 drinks at least once per month. The prevalence of binge drinking was compared to estimates from the general population using data from the World Health Organization. Factors associated with binge drinking among persons declaring any alcohol use in the past year were assessed using a logistic regression model to estimate odds ratio (OR) and their corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI).ResultsAmong 1824 PLHIV (median age 39 years, 62.8% female), the prevalence of hazardous alcohol use ranged from 0.9% in Senegal to 38.4% in Zambia. The prevalence of binge drinking ranged from 14.3% among drinkers in Senegal to 81.8% in Zambia, with higher estimates among PLHIV than in the general population. Male sex (OR 2.4, 95% CI 1.6 to 3.7), tobacco use (OR 1.7, 95% CI 1.0 to 2.9) and living in Zambia were associated with binge drinking.ConclusionsAlcohol consumption patterns varied widely across settings and binge drinking was more frequent in HIV‐positive individuals compared to the general population. Interventions to reduce excessive alcohol use are urgently needed to optimize adherence in the era of universal ART.

IntroductionThere has been limited research on alcohol consumption patterns and their specific risks for the transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among men who have sex with men (MSM) living with HIV. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of alcohol consumption patterns on antiretroviral treatment (ART) adherence and sexual risk-taking behaviors among MSM living with HIV in Chongqing, a municipality with the highest HIV prevalence among MSM in China.MethodsAn institutionally based cross-sectional survey was conducted between 2022 and 2023 in Chongqing, China. The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test-Consumption (AUDIT-C) was administered to evaluate alcohol consumption patterns. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was employed to examine the associations between alcohol consumption patterns, ART adherence, and sexual risk-taking behaviors.ResultsOf the 1,501 MSM living with HIV, the prevalence of alcohol use, hazardous drinking, and binge drinking was 60.2, 24.9 and 43.6%, respectively. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that alcohol use, hazardous drinking, and binge drinking were significantly associated with a higher likelihood of ART non-adherence (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 1.89, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.08–3.30; aOR = 3.43, 95% CI: 2.11–5.58; aOR = 2.17, 95% CI: 1.30–3.62), having multiple sex partners (aOR = 1.62, 95% CI: 1.27–2.06; aOR = 1.49, 95% CI: 1.11–1.99; aOR = 1.65, 95% CI: 1.29–2.11), engaging in commercial sex (aOR = 2.50, 95% CI: 1.56–3.99; aOR = 3.21, 95% CI: 2.16–4.75; aOR = 3.11, 95% CI: 2.03–4.75), and participating in group sex (aOR = 1.73, 95% CI: 1.05–2.83; aOR = 1.79, 95% CI: 1.14–2.80; aOR = 1.77, 95% CI: 1.12–2.80). Alcohol use and binge drinking were associated with higher odds of casual sex (aOR = 1.31, 95% CI: 1.03–1.66; aOR = 1.52, 95% CI: 1.18–1.95). Hazardous drinking and binge drinking were associated with condomless internal ejaculation (CIE) (aOR = 1.37, 95% CI: 1.03–1.83; aOR = 1.44, 95% CI: 1.11–1.86).ConclusionHigh levels of alcohol use, hazardous drinking, and binge drinking are observed among MSM living with HIV in Chongqing. Given the significant associations between alcohol consumption, ART non-adherence, and sexual risk-taking behaviors, public health strategies in Chongqing and similar settings may benefit from screening and interventions to address alcohol consumption among MSM living with HIV.

Prevalence of alcohol use in pregnant women with substance use disorder