Heavy episodic drinking: Determining the predictive utility of five or more drinks.

Abstract

Although the heavy episodic drinking (HED) measure of 5+ drinks (sometimes 4+ for women) is used extensively, there is no empirical basis for the designation of 5 drinks as the threshold (vs. another threshold that may perform equally). The present study sought to determine the threshold for HED that maximally predicts proximal and distal adverse-drinking-related outcomes. Participants included 115 young adults (57% female; 96% Caucasian) who partook in an 8-week Internet survey that assessed daily drinking as well as next-day hangover; 10 months later, adverse outcomes (problem drinking, alcohol-related problems, maximum number of drinks, and drug use) were surveyed. Thresholds were computed, with a range from 1+ drinks to 15+ drinks, and outcomes were predicted from each threshold. Findings for hangover measures showed relatively good convergence across multiple indicators, with greatest prediction occurring at a threshold of 10+ drinks per occasion. Different thresholds were observed for long-term outcomes, with higher thresholds indicative of outcomes with greater severity. Although alternatives to HED, such as subjective effects and blood alcohol concentration, can indicate risky drinking, a threshold measure of HED may have advantages in terms of prevention and of intervention efforts. Keywordsheavy episodic drinking; binge drinking; threshold; alcohol; measurement One of the goals of public health research is understanding the risks and the benefits associated with alcohol consumption (Gunzerath, Faden, Zakhari, & Warren, 2004). Commensurate with the recommendations of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (U.S. Department of Agriculture, 2007), consumption of one to two drinks per day is associated with the lowest mortality risk for the adult U.S. population (Gunzerath et al., 2004). Research is increasingly showing that with regard to alcohol-associated risk, particularly among youths, drinking patterns are of greater importance than is volume consumed (generally measured as the product of frequency of consumption and of quantity consumed on a "typical" occasion). Indeed, at a given volume, less frequent heavy use is associated with greater risk of experiencing a negative outcome than is frequent light drinking (Midanik, Tam, Greenfield, & Caetano, 1996;Wechsler & Nelson, 2001). Occurrence or frequency of heavy episodic drinking (HED), which gauges heavy consumption in a short time frame (Wechsler & Nelson, 2001), has become a key metric in estimations of the prevalence of problematic alcohol involvement. Those who drink heavily on a given occasion are more likely to experience negative outcomes (e.g., injury, driving after drinking, alcohol dependence) compared with those who do not drink heavily on that occasion (e.g., Knight et al., 2003;Midanik et al., 1996;Wechsler, Davenport, Dowdall, Moeykens, & Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Kristina M. Jackson, Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies, Box G-S121-4, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912. Kristina_Jackson@bro...

Perceived Approval of Friends and Parents as Mediators of the Relationship Between Self-Determination and Drinking

“…Although this represents a large proportion of students (42.7% of the screening sample), it is unclear how fi ndings might have differed without this inclusion criteria. Criteria for heavy drinking also vary greatly across studies, and differences in defi nition may further affect the comparability of fi ndings (Jackson, 2008). Finally, all of the measures used in the study were self-report measures, although the use of self-report measures for alcohol use among college students has been shown to be relatively reliable and valid (Johnson and Mott, 2001;Johnston and O'Malley, 1985).…”

Alkoholintoxikierte Kinder und Jugendliche in der Notfallversorgung Hamburger Krankenhäuser

“…Meist wird der Konsum von mindestens fünf Standardeinheiten Alkohol (zum Beispiel 0,3 l Bier, 0,2 l Wein oder 4 cl Spirituosen; 5+ oder "five in a row") mit dem Ziel, einen Rausch herbeizuführen, als Binge Drinking definiert [2]. Nähme man als Definitionskriterium jedoch daraus resultierende problematische körperliche oder soziale Folgeschäden, so wären eher acht bis zehn Standardeinheiten als Kriterium anzusetzen [3]. Insgesamt ist der Begriff "Binge Drinking" sehr unscharf [4].…”

Alcohol hangover: a critical review of explanatory factors

“…Hangover has always been associated to acute alcohol intoxication and also recently to heavy episodic drinking in young adults (Delk and Meilman, 1996;Mallett et al, 2006;Jackson, 2008). It is generally assumed as one of the most prevalent aversive phenomena of alcohol drinking (Slutske et al, 2003;Wright, 1997), even in those cases where alcohol intake expectancy effects would be positive.…”