Alcohol Consumption and the Experience of Adverse Consequences—A Comparison of Six European Countries

This paper describes prevalence rates of self-reported experiences of alcohol-related problems in six Western European countries and examines how self-reported consumption of alcohol is associated with the likelihood of experiencing these problems. Of particular interest is to assess whether alcohol is more strongly associated with the likelihood of experiencing adverse consequences in Northern Europe than in countries in Central and Southern Europe. Data on self-reported volume of drinking and binge drinking and of experiences of various alcohol-related problems from a general population survey undertaken in Finland, Sweden, Germany, the UK, France and Italy during the spring of 2000 were analyzed. The number of respondents was about 1,000 men and women (ages 18–64) in each country. In the assessment of the link between drinking and harm, results showed that the overall prevalence of alcohol-related harm was highest in Finland and the UK and lowest in Southern Europe. A general positive association was found between volume of drinking and problems, although some country differences were observed. The risk curve analysis also revealed that problems occurred at fairly low drinking levels. In the multivariate logistic regression analyses, the volume of drinking and a measure of binge drinking were both statistically significant predictors of most problems in most countries. A major conclusion is that both volume of drinking and binge drinking are important determinants of the risk of experiencing adverse consequences from drinking in all six European countries.