Job strain and alcohol intake: a collaborative meta-analysis of individual-participant data from 140,000 men and women.
BACKGROUND
The relationship between work-related stress and alcohol intake is uncertain. In order to add to the thus far inconsistent evidence from relatively small studies, we conducted individual-participant meta-analyses of the association between work-related stress (operationalised as self-reported job strain) and alcohol intake.


RESULTS
We analysed cross-sectional data from 12 European studies (n = 142 140) and longitudinal data from four studies (n = 48 646). Job strain and alcohol intake were self-reported. Job strain was analysed as a binary variable (strain vs. no strain). Alcohol intake was harmonised into the following categories: none, moderate (women: 1-14, men: 1-21 drinks/week), intermediate (women: 15-20, men: 22-27 drinks/week) and heavy (women: >20, men: >27 drinks/week). Cross-sectional associations were modelled using logistic regression and the results pooled in random effects meta-analyses. Longitudinal associations were examined using mixed effects logistic and modified Poisson regression. Compared to moderate drinkers, non-drinkers and (random effects odds ratio (OR): 1.10, 95% CI: 1.05, 1.14) and heavy drinkers (OR: 1.12, 95% CI: 1.00, 1.26) had higher odds of job strain. Intermediate drinkers, on the other hand, had lower odds of job strain (OR: 0.92, 95% CI: 0.86, 0.99). We found no clear evidence for longitudinal associations between job strain and alcohol intake.


CONCLUSIONS
Our findings suggest that compared to moderate drinkers, non-drinkers and heavy drinkers are more likely and intermediate drinkers less likely to report work-related stress.
Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, Helsinki, Finland. katriina.heikkila@ttl.fi
Katriina
K
Heikkilä
Solja T
ST
Nyberg
Eleonor I
EI
Fransson
Lars
L
Alfredsson
Dirk
D
De Bacquer
Jakob B
JB
Bjorner
Sébastien
S
Bonenfant
Marianne
M
Borritz
Hermann
H
Burr
Els
E
Clays
Annalisa
A
Casini
Nico
N
Dragano
Raimund
R
Erbel
Goedele A
GA
Geuskens
Marcel
M
Goldberg
Wendela E
WE
Hooftman
Irene L
IL
Houtman
Matti
M
Joensuu
Karl-Heinz
KH
Jöckel
France
F
Kittel
Anders
A
Knutsson
Markku
M
Koskenvuo
Aki
A
Koskinen
Anne
A
Kouvonen
Constanze
C
Leineweber
Thorsten
T
Lunau
Ida E H
IE
Madsen
Linda L
LL
Magnusson Hanson
Michael G
MG
Marmot
Martin L
ML
Nielsen
Maria
M
Nordin
Jaana
J
Pentti
Paula
P
Salo
Reiner
R
Rugulies
Andrew
A
Steptoe
Johannes
J
Siegrist
Sakari
S
Suominen
Jussi
J
Vahtera
Marianna
M
Virtanen
Ari
A
Väänänen
Peter
P
Westerholm
Hugo
H
Westerlund
Marie
M
Zins
Töres
T
Theorell
Mark
M
Hamer
Jane E
JE
Ferrie
Archana
A
Singh-Manoux
G David
GD
Batty
Mika
M
Kivimäki
D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016017:Odds Ratio; D012307:Risk Factors; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000453:epidemiology*; D017132:Workplace; D055815:Young Adult