Alcohol consumption in a Danish cohort during 11 years.
A cohort living in Copenhagen County, originally consisting of 1198 persons, 577 men and 621 women, 40-years of age in 1976, was reexamined in 1981, and again in 1987. Of the original cohort 1052 (88%) participated in 1976, 992 (84%) in 1981, and 965 (85%) in 1987. The purpose of this study was to describe changes in alcohol consumption in the cohort, with the view of identifying subgroups, who have changed their alcohol consumption behaviour to a certain extent. Alcohol consumption was measured by the same questionnaire all three times as to the level of consumption and frequency. Alcohol consumption peaked in 1981 (45-year olds) with 10.4 drinks on average a week. Men increased their consumption by 8% and women by 37%. There was an overall downward tendency in the consumption frequency among men, whereas the opposite was the case among women. The two groups are converging toward a weekly consumption frequency. It seems now that women are leading the change toward a greater wine consumption in relative and absolute terms. It is therefore concluded that female consumption should be considered as a target in future preventive programmes.
Saelan
H
H
Social Welfare Department, City of Copenhagen, Denmark.
Møller
L
L
Køster
A
A
D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000639:trends*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003718:Denmark / Q000453:epidemiology; D004243:Divorce / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008393:Marriage / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008875:Middle Aged; D009790:Occupations; D011159:Population Surveillance; D012042:Registries; D012737:Sex Factors; D012923:Social Class; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires