Wine Information Council
2011
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Has the Boozing Finn Been Tamed? Changes in the Relationships Between Drinking, Intoxication, and Alcohol-Related Harm When Turning From a Spirits-Drinking Country to a Beer-Drinking Country

The aim of this study is to examine whether there is evidence of a"taming" of drinking patterns and a decrease in the rate of harmsper each liter of alcohol consumed during the time when Finlandtransformed from a spirits-drinking country with a low alcoholconsumption level to a beer-drinking country with a high level ofconsumption. According to the results, there has been a nearlyconstant increase in both alcohol consumption and related harm.Results on harms-per-liter were ambiguous, with stronger increasesfor chronic than for acute harm and stronger increase in registerbasedaggregate-level data than in survey data. The same amountsof alcohol are nowadays drunk more slowly than before. Overall,there is no compelling evidence in the data that Finnish drinkingpatterns would have become more moderate or that Finnishdrinking habits would have been tamed. The Finnish case, then,does not lend support to reduction of intoxication-related drinkingproblems through modifying beverage preferences.

Additional Info

  • Authors

    Mäkelä P

  • Issue

    Contemporary Drug Problems, pages 517-539, Vol 38

  • Published Date

    2011

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