Abstract

PURPOSE
This secondary data analysis study was aimed at identifying the factors related to the patterns of alcohol use (normal alcohol use, hazardous alcohol use, and alcohol dependence) in the Korean adult.
METHODS
This study analyzed the cross-sectional data from 230,715 Korean adults aged 19 year and older who participated in the 2009 Korean Community Health Survey. Multinomial logistic regression was used to uncover associations between demographic, health related factors and the patterns of alcohol use.
RESULTS
The patterns of alcohol use was differentiated from the sociodemographic variables (residential area, gender, age, marital status, educational level, monthly income, and occupation) and with health related factors (smoking status, hours of sleep, body mass index, pain or discomfort, subjective health, stress level, liver disease, cardio/cerebro vascular disease, and depression). Hazardous alcohol use was lower in rural areas and lower among women, but higher among people who smoke, reported severe stress, and/or depression. Similarly, alcohol dependence was lower among women and among those in rural areas, and was more likely associated with those who smoke, have severe stress and depression.
CONCLUSION
A number of factors are associated with patterns of drinking. Smoking, severe stress and depression seems to confound the problems of alcohol use. Additional research is needed to isolate those factors that are the most important influencing the use of alcohol.