title: Alcohol consumption among middle-aged and elderly men: a community study from western India.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the prevalence and pattern of alcohol use in a middle-aged and elderly population in Mumbai, India.
  
  
  METHODS
  50 220 men aged >/=45 years from the lower and lower-middle section of the general population were interviewed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  18.8% were currently consuming alcoholic beverages, of whom 32.8% drank on at least 6 days per week. The most popular beverage was locally distilled products of fruits and grain (country liquor). Seventy-five per cent of the consumers of country liquor would consume over 53 g of ethanol on a day when they drank, with 46.6% of these doing so on at least 6 days per week.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Abstinence, and also heavy and frequent use of alcohol, are common in this population and the latter is likely to have significant public health implications.
authors.affiliation: Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Homi Bhabha Road, Colaba, Mumbai 400 005, India.
authors.forename: Prakash C
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Gupta
authors.forename: Shekhar
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Saxena
authors.forename: Mangesh S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Pednekar
authors.forename: Pallab K
authors.initials: PK
authors.lastname: Maulik
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D000434:Alcoholic Beverages / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003625:Data Collection / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D007194:India / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors