Alcohol consumption among adult males in urban area of Thanlyin Township, Yangon Region, Myanmar

Abstract

Alcohol consumption is a worldwide problem and frequently related to health, behavioural and socioeconomic problems. 1-4 The occurrence of these alcohol related problems is higher in males than in females of the same age group. 5,6 Almost 6% of total global deaths (7.6% for males and 4% for females), or 3.3 million deaths were related to alcohol consumption in 2012. 7 Besides, alcohol consumption is the leading cause of deaths among males between the ages of 15 and 59 years, or among people aged 15-49 years. 8,9 In the United States of America, it is the third leading cause of preventable deaths and alcohol related problems cost US$ 223.5 billion in 2006. 6,10 Globally, it is the fifth leading cause of premature death and disability. 8 In Myanmar, noncommunicable diseases are growing concern due to changing life styles and socioeconomic development. 11,12 Previous surveys showed that the prevalence of alcohol consumption ranged between 16.2% 13 and 44.6%. 11 Therefore, the present study was conducted to determine the prevalence and risk factors of alcohol consumption ABSTRACT Background: Alcohol consumption is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. It is frequently related to health and behavioural problems as well as socioeconomic hardship. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine the prevalence and risk factors of alcohol consumption among adult males residing in urban area of Thanlyin Township, Yangon Region. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 380 adult males. Multi-stage random sampling was applied. Data entry and analysis was done using Stata 11.0 statistical package. Results: The prevalence of current alcohol drinking, ex-drinking and never drinking were 20.5%, 9.0% and 70.5%, respectively. There was a significant decreasing trend of alcohol consumption across the levels of age-group. Age, education status and practicing other health-risk behaviours such as smoking and betel chewing were detected as significant risk factors of alcohol consumption. Ever smokers and ever betel chewers were about 4 times more likely to be ever alcohol user compared to their counterparts even if age and education level were adjusted. By controlling smoking and betel chewing habits, 79.2% and 76.6% of existing prevalence of alcohol consumption among respondents would be reduced, respectively. Conclusions: There is an urgent need to curb the habit of alcohol consumption among adult males living in urban area, especially young adults. Alcohol and tobacco control policies in Myanmar should be strengthened or reinforced. Tobacco control program also needs to be intensified. Health education and health promotion activities should be enhanced in order to reduce alcohol consumption in the country.

Alcohol consumption patterns among men who have sex with men in major cities of Myanmar: A cross-sectional study

“…Studies in China and other countries also highlighted alcohol consumption among MSM and general population but using different screening tools. Additionally, previous studies have documented the prevalence of alcohol consumption at different time periods (Liu et al, 2016;Lu et al, 2019). In present study, nearly 70% of MSM had consumed alcohol within the past 3 months and 36.2% of Apwint (open type), 35.3% of Apone (hidden type) and 62.8% of Thange (sexual partners of MSM) had experience of binge drinking.…”

“…In Peru, 45% of MSM had an alcohol use disorder and over 90% were hazardous drinkers (Herrera et al, 2016). Another study in China among a general adult population aged 18 to 34 years also identified the prevalence of alcohol consumption as about 45% (Lu et al, 2019). Similarly, another study in US among MSM documented that nearly 14% and 25% were monthly and weekly binge drinkers (Santos et al, 2018).…”

“…Differences in background sociocultural conditions may contribute to this discrepancy. (Liu et al, 2016;Lu et al, 2019).…”

Alcohol consumption patterns among men who have sex with men in major cities of Myanmar: A cross-sectional study

“…By considering the estimated proportion of MSM who are current drinkers as 20% ( Oo et al , 2015 ), to achieve a 95% confidence level and an error of 5%, the minimum required sample size becomes 246 ( Wayne, 1995 ).…”

Prevalence and Correlates of Current Alcohol Use among Bhutanese Adults: A Nationally Representative Survey Data Analysis

“…A number of proposed factors affect the magnitude and pattern of alcohol use and predisposition to the risk of alcohol use disorders. Male sex,[212223] young age,[21] older age,[24] no education or primary education,[222425] lower socioeconomic status,[25] mental disorder,[26] medicinal benefits,[27] smoking,[2829] betel nut chewing,[29] having a spouse who drinks alcohol,[25] manual laborer status,[26] and living in urban areas[23] have been identified in other studies as factors associated with alcohol use.…”