Papers Abstracts Saturday 4 October 1997

Beer binging and mortality: results from the Kuopio ischaemic heart disease
risk factor study, a prospective population based study

Jussi Kauhanen, George A Kaplan, Debbie E Goldberg, Jukka T Salonen

Abstract

Objective: To examine the association between beer binging (regular
sessions of heavy beer drinking) and mortality.

Design: Prospective population based study with the baseline assessment of
level of alcohol intake (dose), by type of drink and drinking pattern,
previous and existing diseases, socioeconomic background, occupational
status, involvement in organisations during leisure time, physical activity
in leisure time, body mass index, blood pressure, serum lipids and plasma
fibrinogen concentration, during an average of 7.7 years' follow up of
mortality.

Setting: Finland.

Subjects: A population sample of 1641 men who consumed beer who were aged
42, 48, 54, or 60 years at baseline.

Main outcome measures: All cause mortality, cardiovascular mortality, death
due to external causes, fatal myocardial infarctions.

Results: The risk of death was substantially increased in men whose usual
dose of beer was 6 or more bottles per session compared with men who
usually consumed less than 3 bottles, after adjustment for age and total
alcohol consumption (relative risk 3.01 (95% confidence interval 1.54 to
5.90) for all deaths; 7.10 (2.01 to 25.12) for external deaths; and 6.50
(2.05 to 20.61) for fatal myocardial infarction). The association changed
only slightly when smoking, occupational status, previous diseases,
systolic blood pressure, low density lipoprotein and high density
lipoprotein cholesterol concentration, plasma fibrinogen concentration,
body mass index, marital status, leisure time physical activity, and
involvement in organisations were controlled for.

Conclusion: The pattern of beer binging is associated with increased risk
of death, independently of the total average consumption of alcoholic
drinks. The relation is not explained by known behavioural, psychosocial,
or biological risk factors. Death due to injuries and other external causes
is overrepresented among beer bingers, but a strong association with fatal
myocardial infarction suggests that the pathway may also involve other
acute triggers of severe health events.

Research Institute of Public Health and Department of Public Health and
General Practice,
University of Kuopio,
Kuopio,
Finland

Jussi Kauhanen, junior research fellow
Jukka T Salonen, professor

Department of Epidemiology,
School of Public Health,
University of Michigan,
Ann Arbor,
MI 481092029,
USA
George A Kaplan, professor

Human Population Laboratory,
Berkeley,
CA 94704,
USA
Debbie E Goldberg, research associate

Correspondence to: Dr Jussi Kauhanen

Department of Public Health and General Practice,
University of Kuopio,
Box 1627,
FIN70211 Kuopio,
Finland

jussi.kauhanen@uku.fi