Drinking in the home: What does it entail for younger and older Finns?

Abstract

Introduction Studies about drinking in homes are scarce despite the growing importance of the phenomenon. We examined how often different age groups in Finland drink—overall or to intoxication—in their own homes without company beyond the family and in their own or other people's homes with other company, compared to other settings, and on what days and hours of the week this occurs. Methods A general population survey carried out in 2016 with event‐level data (n = 7124 occasions by 1955 respondents). Key measurements included location, drinking company, amount of alcohol drunk and time of the week. Results Drinking occasions in which alcohol was drunk at home without visitors made up 74% of all occasions and 73% of all intoxication occasions among people aged 60–79 years and 25% and 5% among 15‐ to 29‐year‐olds, respectively. The share of ‘with company’ occasions in somebody's home varied less by age. Occasions with pre/post drinking in homes and drinking occasions lasting until late at night were seen most often among 15‐ to 29‐year‐olds. Discussion and Conclusions The important aspects of home drinking vary greatly by age group and depending on what risk or type of consequence is considered. For older people and for chronic harm, the key aspect is drinking at home without company beyond the family. The more important aspect for younger people and acute harm is pre‐ and post‐drinking in homes before or after going to bars or nightclubs, which results in long evenings with large amounts of alcohol consumed.

Drinking at home: Restricting alcohol availability is a key mechanism to reduce harms

“…This work brings us back to concerns we have expressed before; the preoccupation with young people in alcohol research and consequent lack of attention to alcohol use in domestic settings [2]. Redressing these, Mäkelä et al [7] used Finnish cross‐sectional data to establish that 74% of all home drinking occasions and 73% of those involving intoxication in people aged 60–69 years occurred when there were no visitors. They found that older drinkers drink at home more often and when they do it is less social.…”

“…Cultures and practices that frame alcohol use at home are deeply embedded and difficult to change, as Lyons et al [10] show. As Mäkelä et al and Strating et al [7, 11] note, with their respective colleagues, current evidence suggests that the best options to reduce alcohol consumption in domestic settings are those addressing price and availability. Together, the papers in this special issue provide support for the argument that tightening regulation of off‐premise alcohol availability and home delivery through limiting times when it is available and ensuring responsible service protocols are adhered to is essential, as are other measures such as price controls.…”