Type of alcohol and drinking pattern in 56, 970 Danish men and women

OBJECTIVE: To describe drinking patterns among individuals who prefer drinking wine, beer or spirits. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study obtaining detailed information on intake of wine, beer and spirits and on frequency of alcohol intake. Adjustment for gender, age, smoking habits, educational attainment and body mass index. SETTING: Denmark. SUBJECTS: 27, 151 men and 29, 819 women, randomly selected from Copenhagen and Aarhus, Denmark. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Drinking pattern-steady or binge drinking. RESULTS: A vast majority (71%) of both men and women preferred wine or beer. At all levels of total alcohol intake, beer drinkers were most likely to be frequent drinkers. Thus, light drinkers of beer had an odds ratio for being frequent drinkers of 1.97 (95% confidence limits 1.50-2.58) as compared to light drinkers of wine (total alcohol intake 3-30 drinks per month), while people who preferred beer had an odds ratio of 1. 29 (1.19-1.40) compared with wine drinkers in the moderate drinking category (31-134 drinks per month). There were no significant differences in total alcohol intake between individuals preferring different alcoholic beverages. CONCLUSION: If binge drinking is less healthy than steady drinking, the relation between wine intake and coronary heart disease mortality could be subject to negative confounding, since beer drinkers seem to have the most sensible drinking pattern. SPONSORSHIP: Danish Cancer Society and the Danish National Board of Health. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition (2000) 54, 174-176     

Type of Alcoholic Beverage and Risk of Head and Neck Cancer--A Pooled Analysis Within the INHANCE Consortium

The authors pooled data from 15 case-control studies of headand neck cancer (9,107 cases, 14,219 controls) to investigatethe independent associations with consumption of beer, wine,and liquor. In particular, they calculated associations withdifferent measures of beverage consumption separately for subjectswho drank beer only (858 cases, 986 controls), for liquor-onlydrinkers (499 cases, 527 controls), and for wine-only drinkers(1,021 cases, 2,460 controls), with alcohol never drinkers (1,124cases, 3,487 controls) used as a common reference group. Theauthors observed similar associations with ethanol-standardizedconsumption frequency for beer-only drinkers (odds ratios (ORs)= 1.6, 1.9, 2.2, and 5.4 for 5, 6–15, 16–30, and>30 drinks per week, respectively; P_trend < 0.0001) andliquor-only drinkers (ORs = 1.6, 1.5, 2.3, and 3.6; P < 0.0001).Among wine-only drinkers, the odds ratios for moderate levelsof consumption frequency approached the null, whereas thosefor higher consumption levels were comparable to those of drinkersof other beverage types (ORs = 1.1, 1.2, 1.9, and 6.3; P <0.0001). Study findings suggest that the relative risks of headand neck cancer for beer and liquor are comparable. The authorsobserved weaker associations with moderate wine consumption,although they cannot rule out confounding from diet and otherlifestyle factors as an explanation for this finding. Giventhe presence of heterogeneity in study-specific results, theirfindings should be interpreted with caution. alcohol drinking; alcoholic beverages; beer; case-control studies; head and neck neoplasms; meta-analysis; wine     

Alcoholic beverage preference and risk of becoming a heavy drinker

BACKGROUND: Studies have suggested that wine drinkers are at lower risk of death than beer or spirits drinkers. The aim of this study is to examine whether the risk of becoming a heavy or excessive drinker differs among individuals who prefer different types of alcoholic beverages. METHODS: In a longitudinal study of 10,330 moderate drinkers from Copenhagen, Denmark, we used logistic regression analyses to address the risk of becoming a heavy or excessive drinker (above 14 and 21 drinks per week, respectively, for women and above 21 and 35 drinks per week for men) according to preference of wine, beer, or spirits. RESULTS: Compared with those who preferred wine, those who preferred beer tended to have increased risk of becoming heavy and excessive drinkers. Women who preferred beer had odds ratios of 1.14 (95% CI = 0.87-1.50) for becoming heavy drinkers and 1.50 (95% CI = 0.93-2.43) for becoming excessive drinkers. For men who preferred beer the ORs were 1.16 (95% CI = 0.84-1.58) and 1.81 (95% CI = 0.85-3.82). CONCLUSION: The finding that moderate wine drinkers appear to be at lower risk of becoming heavy and excessive drinkers may add to the explanation of the reported beverage-specific differences in morbidity and mortality.     

Alcohol consumption and the risk of gastric cancer

The relationship between alcohol drinking and gastric cancer risk was analyzed using data from a case-control study conducted in Northern Italy between 1985 and 1993 on 746 cases of histologically confirmed incident stomach cancer and 2,053 controls in hospital for acute nonneoplastic nondigestive tract diseases. Wine was the most frequently consumed alcoholic beverage, accounting for approximately 90% of all alcohol consumption. Compared with those who never drank wine, the odds ratios (OR) were 1.1 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.9-1.3] for fewer than four drinks per day, 1.3 (95% CI 1.0-1.7) for four to fewer than six drinks per day, 1.6 (95% CI 1.1-2.4) for six to fewer than eight drinks per day, and 1.4 (95% CI 1.0-2.0) for eight or more drinks per day. No association was observed with beer or spirits. For total alcohol consumption, 25% of cases and 30% of controls never drank alcohol, and the multivariate OR for those who drank versus those who did not drink was 1.1 (95% CI 0.9-1.4). After allowance for smoking, education, family history of stomach cancer, selected micronutrient intake, and nonalcohol calorie intake, the ORs were 1.1 (95% CI 0.9-1.4) for fewer than six drinks per day, 1.0 (95% CI 0.4-1.4) for six to fewer than eight drinks per day, and 1.3 (95% CI 0.9-1.9) for eight or more drinks per day, and the trend in risk was not significant. No interaction was observed between alcohol drinking and sex, family history, and smoking, but the association with alcohol drinking was appreciably stronger in the elderly and in less-educated individuals. Thus this large data set was able to exclude a strong and consistent association between alcohol (mainly wine) drinking and stomach cancer risk. A nonsignificant association was observed in those who drank very heavily, but the absence of a dose-risk relationship suggests that even such a moderate association may reflect inadequate allowance for covariates or the presence of other risk factors (possibly related to diet and social class) among the heaviest drinkers.     

Alcohol consumption and Mediterranean Diet adherence among health science students in Spain: the DiSA-UMH Study

ObjectiveTo describe the association between consumption of different alcoholic beverages and adherence to the Mediterranean diet.MethodsA cross-sectional analysis was conducted of the baseline data of the DiSA-UMH study, an ongoing cohort study with Spanish health science students (n = 1098) aged 17-35 years. Dietary information was collected by a validated 84-item food frequency questionnaire. Participants were grouped into non-drinkers, exclusive beer and/or wine drinkers and drinkers of all types of alcoholic beverages. Mediterranean diet adherence was determined by using a modification of the relative Mediterranean Diet Score (rMED; score range: 0-16) according to consumption of 8 dietary components. We performed multiple linear and multinomial regression analyses.ResultsThe mean alcohol consumption was 4.3 g/day (SD: 6.1). A total of 19.5%, 18.9% and 61.6% of the participants were non-drinkers, exclusive beer and/or wine drinkers and drinkers of all types of alcoholic beverages, respectively. Participants who consumed beer and/or wine exclusively had higher rMED scores than non-drinkers (β: 0.76, 95%CI: 0.25-1.27). Drinkers of all types of alcoholic beverages had similar rMED scores to non-drinkers. Non-drinkers consumed less fish and more meat, whereas drinkers of all types of alcoholic beverages consumed fewer fruits, vegetables and more meat than exclusive beer and/or wine drinkers.ConclusionsThe overall alcohol consumption among the students in our study was low-to-moderate. Exclusive beer and/or wine drinkers differed regarding the Mediterranean diet pattern from non-drinkers and drinkers of all types of alcohol. These results show the need to properly adjust for diet in studies of the effects of alcohol consumption.     

Alcoholic beverage consumption and breast cancer in a French case-control study

An association between regular consumption of alcohol with meals and breast cancer was found in a French case-control study of 1,010 women with breast cancer and 1,950 women with nonmalignant diseases; the relative risk of breast cancer for women drinking alcoholic beverages with meals compared with nondrinkers was 1.47 (p = 10(-4) allowing for classical risk factors. Detailed information on alcohol consumption was obtained from 500 cases and 945 controls; the risks of breast cancer were greater for women drinking beer and for women drinking wine than for nondrinkers, and the risk increased with the amount of beer, of wine and of total alcohol consumption in grams of pure alcohol.     

What Do Binge Drinkers Drink?: Implications for Alcohol Control Policy

BACKGROUND: Although binge drinking (drinking five or more drinks on an occasion) is an important public health problem, little is known about which beverage types are consumed by binge drinkers. This knowledge could guide prevention efforts because beer, wine, and liquor are taxed, marketed, and distributed differently. METHODS: Data from 14,150 adult binge drinkers who responded to the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System binge-drinking module in 2003 and 2004 were analyzed. Information pertained to the amount of alcohol consumed during a binge drinker's most recent binge episode, including beverage-specific consumption. RESULTS: Overall, 74.4% of binge drinkers consumed beer exclusively or predominantly, and those who consumed at least some beer accounted for 80.5% of all binge alcohol consumption. By beverage type, beer accounted for 67.1%, liquor for 21.9%, and wine accounted for 10.9% of binge drinks consumed. Beer also accounted for most of the alcohol consumed by those at highest risk of causing or incurring alcohol-related harm, including people aged 18-20 years (67.0% of drinks were beer); those with three or more binge episodes per month (70.7%); those drinking eight or more drinks per binge episode (69.9%); those binging in public places (64.4%); and those who drove during or within 2 hours of binge drinking (67.1%). CONCLUSIONS: Beer accounted for two thirds of all alcohol consumed by binge drinkers and accounted for most alcohol consumed by those at greatest risk of causing or incurring alcohol-related harm. Lower excise taxes and relatively permissive sales and marketing practices for beer as compared with other beverage types may account for some of these findings. These findings suggest that equalizing alcohol control policies at more stringent levels would be an effective way to prevent excessive drinking.     

Beer, wine, spirits and subjective health

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To examine the association between intake of different types of alcoholic beverages and self reported subjective health. DESIGN: Cross sectional health survey with assessment of intake of beer, wine and spirits (at last non-weekend day), smoking habits, social networks, physical activity, body mass index, educational level, presence of chronic disease, and self reported health. SETTING: WHO Copenhagen Healthy City Survey, Denmark. PARTICIPANTS: 4113 men and 7926 women aged 18 to 100 years. MAIN RESULTS: Of the 12,039 subjects, 8680 reported their health as optimal, and 3359 reported a suboptimal health. After controlling for the covariates, the relation between total alcohol intake and the proportion reporting suboptimal health was J shaped. Heavy drinkers of any of the three types of alcoholic beverages had a higher prevalence of suboptimal health than non-drinkers. However, only light (1-2 glasses of wine yesterday) and moderate (3-5) wine drinkers had significantly lower odds ratios for suboptimal health--0.72 (95% confidence limits; 0.56 to 0.92) and 0.65 (0.49 to 0.87), respectively--when compared with non-wine drinkers. Moderate beer or spirits drinkers did not differ significantly from non-drinkers of these beverages with regard to prevalence of suboptimal health. Consistently, beer preference drinkers had an odds ratio of 1.50 (1.25 to 1.80) for suboptimal health compared with wine preference drinkers. CONCLUSIONS: A light to moderate wine intake is related to good self perceived health, whereas this is not the case for beer and spirits. The causal relations creating this association are unknown and should be considered when interpreting the relation between different types of alcoholic beverages and subsequent morbidity and mortality.     

Alcohol drinking and risk of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma

OBJECTIVE: To analyse the relation between alcohol intake and the risk of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). DESIGN: Hospital-based case-control study. SETTINGS: The greater Milan area and the province of Pordenone, Northern Italy. SUBJECTS: Cases were 446 (256 men and 190 women) with histologically confirmed incident NHL, and controls were 1295 (791 men and 504 women) with acute non-neoplastic conditions. RESULTS: Compared to non-drinkers, the odds ratio (OR) was 0.92 for <3 drinks per day, 0.98 for 3-6 drinks, and 1.02 for > or =7 drinks per day. Wine drinking was also not associated with risk, and the OR was 0.85 for drinkers of > or =7 drinks/day compared to non-drinkers. Beer and spirit intake was also not associated with NHL risk. CONCLUSIONS: Our study, based on a population with relatively high alcohol intakes, indicates that there is no appreciable association between intake of various alcoholic beverages and the risk of NHL. SPONSORSHIP: Italian Association for Research on Cancer, Milan, Italy.     

Alcohol and breast cancer in an area with high alcohol consumption

The association between alcohol drinking and breast cancer risk was investigated in 132 breast cancer cases and 499 controls with acute conditions unrelated to alcohol or any of the suspected risk factors for breast cancer, in an area which shows among the highest levels of alcohol consumption and prevalence of alcohol-related diseases in Europe (i.e. Pordenone Province, Northeastern part of Italy). Compared with non-drinkers, the multivariate odds ratio (OR) for ever drinkers was 1.5 (95% confidence interval, CI: 0.8-2.6). The risks for wine (the almost exclusive source of alcohol in the present investigation) were 1.2 for up to 1 drink, 1.4 for up to two drinks, 1.9 for up to 3 and 1.6 for over 3 drinks per day. Time-related factors (i.e. drinking habit duration and age at start of drinking) did not seem to be risk indicators.     

Wine drinking and risk of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma among men in the United States: a population-based case-control study

The relation between wine consumption and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) was investigated using data from the Selected Cancers Study. Cases (n = 960) were men aged 32-60 years diagnosed with NHL from 1984 to 1988 and identified from eight US population-based cancer registries. Controls (n = 1,717) were men recruited by random digit dialing and frequency matched to cases by age and registry. Logistic regression was used to calculate odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals adjusted for age, registry, race/ethnicity, education, and smoking. Odds ratios for men who consumed less than one and those who consumed one or more wine drinks per day were 0.8 (95% confidence interval: 0.5, 1.3) and 0.4 (95% confidence interval: 0.2, 0.9) compared with nondrinkers, respectively (p for trend = 0.02). Among wine drinkers who consumed alcohol beverages from ages 16 years or less, odds ratios for intakes of less than one and one or more wine drinks per day were 0.4 (95% confidence interval: 0.2, 0.97) and 0.3 (95% confidence interval: 0.1, 0.8), respectively (p for trend = 0.004). No associations were evident for beer or spirits. These data show that consumption of wine, but not of beer or spirits, is associated with a reduced NHL risk.     

Patterns of alcohol consumption in middle-aged men from France and Northern Ireland. The PRIME study

OBJECTIVE: To assess the patterns of alcohol consumption in France and Northern Ireland. DESIGN: Four cross-sectional studies. SETTING: Sample of 50-59 y old men living in France and Northern Ireland, consuming at least one unit of alcoholic beverage per week. SUBJECTS: 5363 subjects from France and 1367 from Northern Ireland. INTERVENTIONS: None. RESULTS: Consumption of wine was higher in France whereas consumption of beer and spirits was higher in Northern Ireland. Alcohol drinking was rather homogeneous throughout the week in France, whereas Fridays and Saturdays accounted for 60% of total alcohol consumption in Northern Ireland. In both countries, current smokers had a higher consumption of all types of alcoholic beverages than non-smokers. Similarly, obese and hypertensive subjects had a higher total alcohol consumption than non-obese or normotensive subjects, but the type of alcoholic beverages differed between countries. In Northern Ireland, subjects which reported some physical activity consumed significantly less alcoholic beverages than sedentary subjects, whereas no differences were found in France. Conversely, subjects with dyslipidemia consumed more alcoholic beverages than normolipidemic subjects in France, whereas no differences were found in Northern Ireland. In France, total alcohol, wine and beer consumption was negatively related to socioeconomic status and educational level. In Northern Ireland, total alcohol, beer and spirits consumption was negatively related whereas wine consumption was positively related to socioeconomic status and educational level. CONCLUSIONS: Alcohol drinking patterns differ between France and Northern Ireland, and also according to cardiovascular risk factors, socioeconomic and educational levels. SPONSORSHIP: Merck, Sharp & Dohme-Chibret (France), the NICHSA and the Department of Health and Social Service (Northern Ireland).     

The relations of alcoholic beverage use to colon and rectal cancer

The authors prospectively studied the incidence of cancers of the colon and rectum in 106,203 men and women, both white and black, who supplied data at northern California Kaiser Permanente facilities about use of alcoholic beverages in 1978-1984. Analysis controlling for age, sex, race, body mass index, coffee use, total serum cholesterol, and education showed a positive association of alcohol use to both types of cancer, which was stronger for rectal cancer (trend test, p = 0.03) than for colon cancer (trend test, p = 0.11). When persons with a daily intake of three or more drinks were compared with abstainers, relative risk for rectal cancer was 3.17 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.05-9.57) and relative risk for colon cancer was 1.71 (95% CI: 0.92-3.19). Women with a daily intake of three or more drinks had a relative risk for colon cancer of 2.56 (95% CI: 1.03-6.40) compared with 1.16 (95% CI: 0.46-2.90) for men. Among drinkers, preference for wine, beer, or hard liquor had no significant independent relation to either type of cancer; those who preferred beer were at slightly greater risk of rectal cancer, but those who preferred wine were more likely to develop colon cancer. These data suggest that total alcohol use, but no one specific beverage type, is associated with increased risk of rectal cancer.     

Alcohol and breast cancer

We examined breast cancer incidence in a cohort of about 69,000 women who answered detailed questions about alcohol consumption from 1979 to 1984. Among women with no prior cancer, breast cancer had developed in 303 by the end of 1984 for an age-adjusted incidence of 1.3/1,000 person years of follow-up. In analysis controlling only for age there was a progressive increase in breast cancer incidence corresponding to each higher level of reported alcohol consumption. In multivariate analyses controlling for age, race, body mass, and smoking, the relative risk at 1-2 drinks/day was 1.5 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.0-2.3), at 3-5 drinks/day was 1.5 (95% CI 0.8-2.8), and at 6 or more drinks/day was 3.3 (95% CI 1.2-9.3). Past drinkers tended to have been heavier drinkers than current drinkers and had a relative risk of 2.2 (95% CI 1.2-3.9). Study of wine, beer, and liquor use did not suggest that any particular alcoholic beverage was responsible. Significant associations with heavy alcohol consumption were strongest among white and postmenopausal women. This study adds support to the growing evidence that alcohol may be a risk factor for development of breast cancer.     

Cancer and non-cancer controls in studies on the effect of tobacco and alcohol consumption.

A comparison of risk estimates using controls with other cancers versus controls with acute diseases unrelated to tobacco and alcohol consumption in the study of the effect of these two factors has been performed using data on tumours of the oral cavity and pharynx from an ongoing case-control surveillance programme in Northeastern Italy. Similar results were obtained using either type of controls: as compared to never smokers, moderate smokers (less than or equal to 14 cigarettes/day) showed age- and sex-adjusted odds ratio (OR) = 5.2 (95% confidence interval (CI): 2.9-9.2) when using cancer controls and 5.8 (95% CI: 3.3-10.1) when using non-cancer controls. Similarly, those who had smoked for 40 years or longer showed ORs of 7.4 (95% CI: 4.0-13.6) and 8.8 (95% CI: 4.9-15.6), respectively, using cancer and non-cancer controls. For moderate drinkers of alcoholic beverages (21-34 drinks/week) and heavy drinkers (greater than or equal to 84 drinks/week) the ORs, as compared to individuals who drank less than 21 drinks/week, were 1.9 (95% CI: 1.0-3.6) and 2.2 (95% CI: 1.2-4.0) and 10.6 (95% CI: 5.5-20.6) and 11.4 (95% CI: 6.0-21.4) using cancer and non-cancer controls, respectively. The same comparability of ORs for tobacco- and alcohol-related variables using either type of controls was observed when separate analyses of the two sexes were performed. The close similarity between cancer and non-cancer controls in studies on tobacco- and alcohol-related risks may be exploited when the choice of other types of controls would increase the costs and the feasibility of the study, and thus hamper its statistical power.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Alcohol drinking and bladder cancer

The relation between alcoholic beverage consumption and bladder cancer risk was investigated using data from a case-control study conducted between 1985 and 1992 in two areas of northern Italy. Cases were 727 patients with incident, histologically confirmed bladder cancer, and controls 1,067 patients admitted to the same network of hospitals for acute, non-neoplastic, nonurologic, or genital tract diseases. Compared to nondrinkers, the odds ratio (OR) was 0.79 (95% confidence interval, CI, 0.58-1.08) for drinkers, and 0.84 (95%CI, 0.58-1.22) for > or =6 drinks/day. The OR was 0.86 (95%CI, 0.60-1.23) for > or =5 wine drinks/day, 0.69 for beer, and 0.85 for spirits. No trend was observed with duration (OR =1.00 for > or =40 years). ORs were consistent across various strata of covariates including age, sex, and smoking habits. Our study, based on a population with high alcohol (mainly wine) intake, found no association between bladder cancer risk and alcohol intake, even at high levels of consumption.     

Type of alcoholic drink and risk of major coronary heart disease events and all-cause mortality

OBJECTIVES: This study examined the effects of beer, spirits, and wine drinking on coronary heart disease (CHD) events (fatal and nonfatal) and all-cause mortality. METHODS: Men aged 40 to 59 years (n = 7735) were drawn at random from one general practice in each of 24 British towns and followed up for an average of 16.8 years. RESULTS: Regular drinkers showed a significantly lower relative risk of CHD, but no all-cause mortality, than occasional drinkers, even after adjustment for potential confounders. The benefit for CHD of regular drinking was seen within both beer drinkers and spirit drinkers but not among men who reported wine drinking. However, all men who reported wine drinking (both occasional and regular) showed significantly lower age-adjusted risks of CHD and all-cause mortality than men drinking beer or spirits; beer and spirit drinkers showed similar risks. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest that regular intake of all alcoholic drinks is associated with a lower risk of CHD, but not all-cause mortality, than occasional drinking. A large part, but not all, of the greater benefit seen in wine drinkers relative to other drinkers can be attributed to advantageous lifestyle characteristics (e.g., low rates of smoking and obesity).     

Consumption of alcoholic beverages and subjective health in Spain

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To examine the relation between alcohol and main alcoholic beverage consumption and subjective health in Spain. DESIGN: Logistic regression analysis using a cross sectional survey based on self reported data on alcohol and alcoholic beverage consumption, subjective health and the principal confounding factors (age, sex, civil status, educational level, job status, social support, region of residence, size of town or city, tobacco consumption, physical activity during leisure time and work hours, and chronic disease). SETTING: The 1993 Spanish National Health Survey. PARTICIPANTS: A 19 573 person sample, representative of the non-institutionalised Spanish population aged 16 years and over. MAIN RESULTS: Among Spaniards, 31.4% reported their health as suboptimal (fair, poor or very poor) and 56.9% consumed alcohol regularly, with the majority having a preference for wine. Light (1-2 drinks per day) or moderate consumption (3-4 drinks per day) was the most frequent pattern. After adjusting for confounding factors, a negative dose-response relation was observed between consumption of total alcohol, wine and beer, and prevalence of suboptimal health (linear trend: p<0.001 for total alcohol, p=0.023 for wine, and p=0.030 for beer). In contrast, for consumption of spirits the prevalence of ill health in moderate drinkers was lower than in non-drinkers, with no clear relation at higher consumption. While persons reporting a preference for wine had a lower frequency of suboptimal health than did abstainers, they showed no difference in frequency of subjective ill health with respect to persons with preference for other types of drink or no preference whatsoever. CONCLUSIONS: The higher the consumption of total alcohol, wine and beer, the lower the prevalence of suboptimal health. These results differ from those obtained in several Nordic countries, where a "J shaped" relation has been observed for total alcohol and wine, and suggest that the relation between alcohol consumption and subjective health may be different in Mediterranean countries.     

Alcohol and survival in the Italian rural cohorts of the Seven Countries Study

BACKGROUND: Middle-aged men who regularly drink a moderate amount of alcohol have lower mortality rates from all causes in comparison with abstainers and heavy drinkers. This cohort study looks at the relationship between alcohol consumption and long-term survival, adjusting for smoking habit and physical activity. METHODS: In 1965, a total of 1536 Italian males aged 45-65 years underwent an examination which included: a general questionnaire, anthropometric measurements, an overall physical examination, ECG recording, blood pressure and serum cholesterol measurements and measurement of food consumption including alcohol. The cohort was followed for total mortality from 1965 to 1995. RESULTS: During a period of 30 years 1096 deaths occurred. Age-adjusted life expectancy for men assuming a mean daily quantity of 63 g of alcohol (range 4-7 drinks per day) was 21.6 +/- 0.4 years, roughly 2 years more than men taking a mean quantity of 3.7 g (10 drinks per day. Taking smoking habit into account, the longest survival of 22.4 +/- 0.5 years was observed in non-smokers drinking 4-7 drinks daily; the lowest, 18.5 +/- 0.7 years, in smokers drinking >10 drinks. Stratifying for physical activity, the longest survival (23.4 +/- 0. 7 years) was experienced by men engaged in heavy physical activity at work drinking 1-4 drinks per day. CONCLUSIONS: The relationship between life expectancy and alcohol consumption (97% wine in this Italian cohort and mostly red wine) is confirmed to be non-linear. Men aged 45-64 at entry drinking about 5 drinks per day have a longer life expectancy than occasional and heavy drinkers.     

'I drink spirits to get drunk and block out my problems...' beverage preference, drinking motives and alcohol use in adolescence

Aims: To investigate among adolescents whether (i) drinkingmotives are related to beverage preference; (ii) beverage preferenceis related to alcohol use (drinking levels and risky drinkingoccasions); (iii) the association between beverage preferenceand alcohol use is moderated or mediated by drinking motives.Method: Data from a national representative sample of 5379 8th–10thgraders in Switzerland (mean age 15.1, SD = 0.95) were analysedusing multiple regression analyses. Beverage preference wasbased on the proportion of a specific beverage in the totalamount of drinks consumed at the last drinking occasion. Drinkingmotives were assessed by the drinking motive questionnaire revised(DMQ-R). Results: A significant positive association was foundbetween enhancement motives and a preference for beer and spirits;the association was negative with regard to a preference forwine and alcopops. Conformity motives were positively relatedto a wine preference but negatively to a beer preference. Onlya preference for beer and spirits was significantly associatedwith alcohol use in models that exclude motives. However, theassociation between beer preference and adolescent alcohol usewas mediated by drinking motives. A preference for alcopopsand spirits was moderated by motives: social drinkers who preferredalcopops drank less than those who did not prefer alcopops.Coping drinkers who preferred spirits drank more than thosewho preferred other alcoholic drinks. Conclusions: Drinkingmotives are potential explanatory factors for the associationbetween beverage preference and alcohol use. Prevention approachesshould target coping motives, particularly for adolescents whoshow a preference for spirits.