Differences in the measured alcohol content of drinks between black, white and Hispanic men and women in a US national sample.
OBJECTIVE
To measure and describe drink alcohol content differences between Hispanic, non-Hispanic white and non-Hispanic black men and women in the United States.


METHODS
A telephone survey re-interview of 397 respondents who participated originally in the 2005 National Alcohol Survey, of whom 306 provided complete information on home drinks.


METHODS
United States.


METHODS
Adults aged 18 years and older from across the United States.


METHODS
Direct measurement by respondents of simulated drink pours in respondents' own glassware using a provided beaker and reported beverage brands were used to calculate drink alcohol content.


RESULTS
Black men were found to have the largest overall mean drink alcohol content at 0.79 oz (23 ml) of alcohol. This was significantly larger than the mean for white men or for black women and added 30% to black men's monthly alcohol intake when applied to their reported number of drinks. Spirits drinks were found to be particularly large for men. Multivariate models indicated that drink alcohol content differences are attributable more to income and family structure differences than to unmeasured cultural factors tied to race or ethnicity per se. Models predicting alcohol-related consequences and dependence indicate that adjusting drink alcohol content improves model fit and reduces differences between race/ethnicity defined groups.


CONCLUSIONS
Differences in drink alcohol content by gender, race/ethnicity and beverage type choice should be considered in comparisons of drinking patterns and alcohol-related outcomes. Observed differences can be explained partially by measured characteristics regarding family structure and income.
Kerr
William C
WC
Alcohol Research Group, 6475 Christie Avenue, Suite 400, Emeryville, CA 94608, USA. wkerr@arg.org
Patterson
Deidre
D
Greenfield
Thomas K
TK
D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000208:ethnology; D000434:Alcoholic Beverages / Q000032:analysis*; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012650:Self Disclosure; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D044465:White People / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055815:Young Adult