Changes in Alcohol Use in Denmark during the Initial Months of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Further Evidence of Polarization of Drinking Responses

Abstract

<b><i>Introduction:</i></b> The year 2020 was marked by the COVID-19 pandemic. Policy responses to COVID-19 affected social and economic life and the availability of alcohol. Previous research has shown an overall small decrease in alcohol use in Denmark in the first months of the pandemic. The present paper focused on identifying which subgroups of individuals had decreased or increased their consumption. <b><i>Materials and Methods:</i></b> Data were collected between May and July 2020 (<i>n</i> = 2,566 respondents, convenience sample). Weights were applied to reflect the actual Danish general population. Variables included the pre-pandemic alcohol consumption, change in alcohol consumption in the past month, socio-demographics, and reported economic consequences. Responses to a single item assessing changes in alcohol consumption in the past month were classified as no change, increase, or decrease in consumption. Regression models investigated how changes in consumption were linked to pre-pandemic drinking levels, socio-demographics (gender, age groups, education), and reported economic consequences. <b><i>Results:</i></b> While 39% of participants reported decreased consumption levels and 34% had stable levels, 27% increased consumption. Characteristics associated with changes in consumption were associated with both increases and decreases in consumption: younger people, those with higher consumption levels before the pandemic, and those with lower education more often both reported increases as well as decreases in consumption. <b><i>Discussion/Conclusions:</i></b> We confirmed that more people decreased rather than increased their alcohol consumption in the first few months of the pandemic in Denmark. Characteristics associated with changes in consumption such as younger age, higher consumption levels, and lower education demonstrated a polarization of drinking since these were associated with both increases and decreases in consumption. Public health authorities should monitor alcohol use and other health behaviours for increased risks during the pandemic.

Changes in self-reported alcohol consumption at high and low consumption in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic: A test of the polarization hypothesis

“…In general, there was higher self-reported alcohol consumption in 2015 than in 2020, which is in line with previous research on the effect of COVID on alcohol consumption as well as the trends in APC (Kilian, et al, 2022;Kilian, et al, 2021). Although COVID-19 may have had a complex effect on the availability and affordability of alcohol, two key factors in consumption (Babor, et al, 2022), it primarily resulted in reduced consumption.…”

“…In the first year of COVID-19 alone, global consumption indeed went down by 10.3% and in the EU by 6.6% (World Health Organization, 2024). However researchers found that while some of the population dramatically decreased their consumption, for others, there was an increase (Bloomfield et al, 2022;Kilian et al, 2022;Kilian et al, 2021;Neufeld et al, 2020;Sohi et al, 2022). Thus, although in general consumption may have shown a decline or no change following the onset of COVID-19, analyzing the trends within sub populations could improve the understanding of how specific individuals were affected.…”

The Effects of COVID-19 Pandemic Lockdowns on Alcohol Consumption and Tobacco Smoking Behaviour in South Africa: A National Survey

“…Besides the sales restrictions that were imposed during the lockdowns, the reported changes in alcohol consumption and tobacco use might be partly due to differences in socioeconomic status and the potential impact of working from home. In Denmark, the confirmed polarised alcohol consumption in the first few months of the COVID-19 pandemic was characterised by age, consumption levels, and educational status [35]. Therefore, in our study, the more socially advantaged or wealthy groups might have had unfavourable changes because they could afford to buy alcohol and cigarettes in bulk and/or have stocks at home.…”