Latest scientific news 25 June 2019

Patterns of alcohol consumption and alcohol-related harm among European university students

A study examined patterns of alcohol consumption and alcohol-related harm with a survey among 2.191 university students (age range 18-25) from Denmark, England, Germany, Italy, Portugal and Switzerland. Besides the demographic variables, the participants completed the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT).

This study showed that the majority of university students did not report hazardous drinking. European university students mainly scored negative in the AUIT test suggesting low risk patterns of alcohol consumption and alcohol-related harm. However, students from Northern European countries (Denmark, England) had significantly higher AUDIT scores compared with students from Central and Southern European countries Germany, Italy, Portugal, Switzerland) suggesting cultural differences in patterns of drinking and respective harm.

Cooke R, Beccaria F, Demant J, Fernandes-Jesus M, Fleig L, Negreiros J, Scholz U, de Visser R. Patterns of alcohol consumption and alcoholrelated harm among European university students. Eur J Public Health. 2019 May 11. pii: ckz067. doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ ckz067.

For more information about this article, read the scientific abstract here.