Abstract
ObjectiveThis study aimed to assess the predictors among high-risk drinkers in England of attempts to reduce alcohol consumption, the reasons given for these attempts and the association between the various reasons and alcohol consumption.MethodData came from 2,800 high-risk drinkers taking part in the Alcohol Toolkit Study (ATS) between March 2014 and November 2016 who were attempting to reduce their alcohol consumption. Participants completed the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) and were asked questions regarding their socio-demographic characteristics, attempts to cut down and reasons for doing so.ResultsThose cutting down were significantly older (OR 1.01, p<0.001), were more likely to be female (OR 1.32, p<0.05), had higher AUDIT-C scores (OR 1.12, p<0. 001), were less likely to be of white ethnicity (OR 0.64, p<0. 001), and were more likely to reside in the South of England (OR 1.34, p<0. 001). They were also more likely to be of higher occupationally-based social-grades (p<0. 001). The main reported reasons for reducing consumption were: fitness (22.5%), weight loss (20.4%), future health (20.4%), advice from a health-care professional (7.9%) and cost (7.6%). Those reporting the followings reasons for cutting down had higher AUDIT-C scores than those who did not report these reasons: a concern about further health problems (β 0.20, p<0.05), advice from a doctor/health worker (β 0.38, p<0.05), that drinking was too expensive (β 0.42, p<0.01) and detoxification (β 0.42, p<0.01). Lower AUDIT-C scores were noted among those who reported that they knew someone who was cutting down (β -0.67, p<0.05), that there was no reason (β -0.36, p<0.05), or they didn’t know why they were cutting down (β -0.25, p<0.05).ConclusionsAround a fifth of high-risk drinkers in England report trying to reduce their drinking, particularly older, high-socioeconomic female drinkers from the south of England. Attempts to cut down appear to be driven by a desire to improve health, advice from others and cutting down on the cost of drinking.
Highlights
High-risk levels of drinking are associated with a number of social and health outcomes around the world, including an increased risk of mortality, disability and alcohol-related diseases [1]
Those cutting down were significantly older, were more likely to be female, had higher Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT)-C scores, were less likely to be of white ethnicity, and were more likely to reside in the South of England
They were more likely to be of higher occupationally-based social-grades
Summary
High-risk levels of drinking are associated with a number of social and health outcomes around the world, including an increased risk of mortality, disability and alcohol-related diseases [1]. The UK has amongst the highest per capita alcohol consumption of any country in the world [2, 3], with 9.1 million adults drinking at levels above recommended limits [4, 5]. Policies and interventions which help move individuals towards more moderate levels of consumption include the UK ban on the sale of alcohol ‘below cost’, which meant that the selling price of alcohol to consumers could not be lower than tax payable on the product, and the introduction of screening and brief intervention for risk drinking as part of NHS Health Checks [7,8,9]. Modelling studies suggest that a below cost ban can lead to a reduction in annual consumption, alcohol-related deaths and hospitalisation; though the effects are nearly 45 times less than what could be achieved through minimum unit pricing [12]
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