Prevalence and socio-demographic correlates of alcohol consumption: Survey findings from five states in India

Aim: To investigate association between socio-demographic characteristics and alcohol consumption in India. Methods: Analytical data were derived from household surveys conducted by the study team that included 6088 adults in five states of India (male = 3803, female = 2285). The sample was a cross-sectional selected through stratified multistage sampling design. The survey collected data on socio-demographic characteristics of the respondents as well as pattern of alcohol consumption. Multivariate logistic regression models were fitted to investigate socio-demographic association with both alcohol consumption and types of alcoholic beverages consumed (distilled spirits, country liquor, home-brewed). Results: More than one-third of the sample respondents (38.6%, 95%CI = 29.2–48.8%) reported to be current drinkers and approximately one-fifth (21.7%, 95%CI = 4.2–31.7%) were heavy drinkers and 7.4% (95%CI = 4.6–11.6%) were heavy episodic drinkers. In multivariate analyses, age greater than 50 years (OR = 0.70, 95%CI = 0.56–0.86), being female (OR = 0.08, 95%CI = 0.06–0.09), schooling greater than 12 years (OR = 0.61, 95% CI = 0.50–0.75), owning land (OR = 0.74, 95%CI = 0.65–0.86), and living in pucca house (OR = 0.85, 95% CI = 0.74–0.98) were negatively associated with current drinking status. Higher income (OR = 1.30, 95%CI = 1.08–0.57) and living in urban areas (OR = 1.54, 95%CI = 1.33–1.78) were positively associated with current drinking status. Conclusions: Substantial differences in the socio-demographic correlates of alcohol consumption and types of alcoholic beverages exist in India. It is recommended that intervention and prevention strategies to curb alcohol consumption should include drinkers’ characteristic.