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. 2013 Jul;46(4):183-91.
doi: 10.3961/jpmph.2013.46.4.183. Epub 2013 Jul 31.

Drinking patterns among Korean adults: results of the 2009 Korean community health survey

So Yeon Ryu  1 , Catherine M Crespi, Annette E Maxwell
Affiliations

Drinking patterns among Korean adults: results of the 2009 Korean community health survey

So Yeon Ryu et al. J Prev Med Public Health. 2013 Jul.

Abstract

Objectives: In Korea, the proportion of deaths due to alcohol is estimated at 8.9%, far exceeding the global estimate of 3.8%. Therefore, this study was performed to examine the factors associated with low-risk, moderate-risk, and high-risk drinking patterns in Korean adults and to identify target populations for prevention and control of alcohol-related diseases and deaths.

Methods: We analyzed data from 230 715 Korean adults aged 19 years and older who participated in the 2009 Korean Community Health Survey. Multinomial logistic regression analysis was used to examine associations between socio-demographic and health-related factors and patterns of alcohol use.

Results: A substantially larger proportion of men than women engaged in high risk (21.2% vs. 3.4%) and moderate-risk alcohol use (15.5% vs. 8.2%). In both sexes, moderate- and high-risk uses were associated with younger age, higher income, being currently employed, smoking, being overweight/obese, and good self-rated health.

Conclusions: Given the large proportion of the population that is engaging in moderate- and high-risk drinking and given the social norms that support this behavior, public health policies and campaigns to reduce alcohol consumption targeting the entire population are indicated.

Keywords: Alcohol drinking; Epidemiology; High-risk drinking; Republic of Korea; Risk factors.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no conflicts of interest related to the material presented in this paper.

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