The Great Recession, somatic symptomatology and alcohol use and abuse

Abstract

While most research has examined the long-term effects of alcohol consumption on health, the current study examines how health status impacts on drinking behavior. Using data from a national study conducted between 2010 and 2011 to assess the impact of the recession on drinking behavior, this study examines how economic hardships linked to the recent economic recession affect physical health, and how physical health may in turn affect alcohol use. Structural equation models were used to test the predicted associations. The data demonstrate that many of the economic stressors linked to the recession are associated with increased somatic symptoms. Somatic symptoms are also associated with increased drinking for men, but not for women. These findings suggest that men may use alcohol to self medicate somatic symptomatology. The current findings are consistent with gender role-based explanations that account for gender disparities in the utilization of medical care.

A Review of Health Consequences of Recessions Internationally and a Synthesis of the US Response during the Great Recession

“…In aggregate data on consumption, a small proportion of the population that binges on alcohol as a coping mechanism is masked by a larger overall decline in drinking in the general population. 5,21,54 This finding my also explain the previous research on the elasticity of the demand for alcohol, which has shown that as incomes decline by one percent the demand for alcohol declines by less than one percent (inelastic demand). 60 During recessions when incomes inevitably decline, potential abusers may increase consumption so much as to compensate for the reduced consumption from the overall population.…”

“…21,25,[42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49][50][51][52][53][54][55][56][57][58][59] While there is evidence of a decrease in overall alcohol consumption during recessions, 5,53 studies also consistently find an increase in alcohol related traffic accidents 55 (despite an overall decline in deaths from road traffic accidents), binge drinking, 5 and alcohol related hospitalization during economic contractions. 25 In other words, while on average some people reduce their drinking of alcohol, a subpopulation increases its use to potentially dangerous levels, reflecting that the hypotheses above may apply variously to different groups.…”

Evaluation of the Financial Threat Scale (FTS) in four European, non-student samples

“…From heightened rates of suicide (Stuckler et al, 2011), alcohol consumption (Vijayasiri, Richman, and Rospenda, 2012), and anxiety (Ayers et al, 2012), to diminished levels of mood (Lansdall-Welfare, Lampos, and Cristianini, 2012), reduced functional health (French and Davalos, 2011), and decreased marital satisfaction (Dew and Xiao, 2013), a whole host of negative psychosocial consequences have been attributed to the latest recession. Traditionally, social scientists in the area have looked at situational stressors and strains, such as loss of income, job loss, and loss of resources as the main precipitating factors of psychological health issues that arise during economic downturns.…”

The recent economic recession and self-rated health in Estonia, Lithuania and Finland: a comparative cross-sectional study in 2004–2010

“…Policy-related and income-related mechanisms7 may explain negative health outcomes such as increased levels of perceived stress and depression10 11 as a result of economic crisis. Economic stressors can affect individual health-related quality of life, mostly in mental health domains,12 but have also been associated with somatic symptoms,13 hospitalisations,14 increased sickness-absence leave15 and deteriorating self-rated health (SRH) 16…”