title: Association between perceived stress, alcohol consumption levels and obesity in Koreans.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Coping with stress often leads to unhealthy behaviors that can have an impact on the development of obesity. Therefore, this study is investigate the effect of perceived stress level on alcohol consumption habits, as well as the effect of the interaction between alcohol consumption habits and stress level on obesity in Koreans.
  
  
  METHODS
  We analyzed perceived stress, alcohol consumption habits (alcohol consumption status, quantity, and alcohol use disorders identification test) and the anthropometrics of 6,229 subjects from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The gender-based differences of the effect of the perceived level of stress on alcohol consumption habits and anthropometric measurements, as well as the interaction of the perceived level of stress and alcohol consumption habits on prevalence or ORs of obesity were analyzed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The subjects with high perceived stress showed higher proportions for unhealthy alcohol consumption habits than those with low perceived stress [ORs (95% CIs)=1.35 (1.19-1.54), 1.95 (1.68-2.26), and 1.87 (1.60-2.19) for alcohol consumption status, alcohol consumption quantity, and alcohol use disorders identification test, respectively]. Men showed significant interactions between the perceived stress and all alcohol consumption habits with respect to obesity [ORs (95% CIs)=1.28 (1.06-1.55), 1.81 (1.52-2.16), and 1.40 (1.17-1.68) for alcohol consumption status, alcohol consumption quantity, and alcohol use disorders identification test, respectively]. Among women, interactions between the perceived stress and alcohol consumption status [ORs (95% CIs)=0.70 (0.60-0.83)] and alcohol consumption quantity [ORs (95% CIs)=0.93 (0.54-1.36)] in relation to obesity were found to be significant.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study demonstrated that the perceived stress influenced alcohol consumption habits that may have impacted obesity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Graduate School of Public Health, Korea University, Anam-ro, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, Korea.|Department of Laboratory Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, Daehak-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Seung-Jin
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Yoon
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Graduate School of Public Health, Korea University, Anam-ro, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Hae-Joon
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutritional Science and Food Management, Ewha Womans University, Ewhayeodae-gil, Seodamun-Gu, Seoul, Korea. Email: miae_doo@ewha.ac.kr.
authors.forename: Miae
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Doo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D015897:Comorbidity; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009749:Nutrition Surveys; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D010465:Perception; D056910:Republic of Korea / Q000453:epidemiology; D017678:Sex Distribution; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires