title: Are nondrinkers missing from the picture?
abstract: WHO statistics indicate that half the world's population does not drink alcohol. With a Western outlook this fact is often overlooked.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The article explores the global drinking patterns focusing on non-drinking and the global forces that contribute towards change. The large segment of non-drinking population is beneficial for public health but it is also seen as a great potential for the international alcoholic beverage industry.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The forces of globalization towards conformity and a global mono-culture deprived of cultural diversity also affects non-drinking populations, to the detriment of public health.
authors.forename: Øystein
authors.initials: Ø
authors.lastname: Bakke
mesh_terms: D064829:Alcohol Abstinence / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D038622:Internationality; D008297:Male; D011634:Public Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data
keywords: Alcohol consumption patterns; abstinence; alcohol marketing; globalization