• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.46 no.1
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• pp.65-77
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• 2020

Objectives: This study investigated the average number of drinkers in Korea, the number of high-risk drinkers, the average amount of alcohol consumed by high-risk drinkers, and the types of alcohol consumed according to the characteristics of the group of dependent drinkers. Methods: The results were obtained by analyzing the following data: The Global Status Report on Alcohol and Health; Country Profile 2014; WHO Country Profile 2014; Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2014, Korean Statistical Information Service; National Tax Statistics-Liquor Tax; Gallup Drinking Frequency Survey 2015 Results: This study found that a large proportion of drinkers in Korea are already high-risk drinkers, and even among drinkers, alcohol consumption was highly biased. It was reported that 49.8% of men in the problem, abuse, and dependence groups accounted for 92.4% of total alcohol consumption among the male population. Notably, the 9.6% of men making up the dependent group consumed more than 30% of the alcohol ingested among males. Women had significant variations within groups that were considered high-risk and exhibited a large share of alcohol consumption in the problem (10.0% of the female population), abuse (1.8% of the female population), and dependence (1.5% of the female population) groups, constituting 72.8% of total alcohol consumption. The average amount of alcohol consumed by drinkers in Korea seems to have exceeded the level of intake by high-risk groups. Alcohol-dependent groups consumed 900.7 mL of soju, 405.2 mL of table wine, and 2,043.8 mL of beer, which is very similar to the consumption average of 2,031 mL of beer and 895.2 mL of soju in the drinking group. Conclusion: It has been shown that men's dependence on alcohol is serious, and it is possible to infer that alcohol consumption in some vulnerable groups is very high. As the average alcohol intake among alcohol-dependent groups and ordinary drinkers is very similar, it is highly likely that the drinker is an alcohol-dependent consumer in Korea.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.159-167
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• 2023

The prevalence of diabetes continues to increase worldwide, and the problem is also important in Korea, and about 14% of Korean adults have diabetes. Alcohol consumptions are increasing rapidly around the world and are recognized as one of the major problems in the country. Alcohol consumption is an environmental factor previously known to be associated with the risk of developing diabetes. Alcohol consumption can cause problems in the endocrine system and gastrointestinal function, and oxidative stress of acetaldehyde, an ethanol metabolite, can damage beta cells in the pancreas. In the present study, we found the effect of alcohol intake on fasting blood sugar and the difference between men and women in the risk of diabetes according to alcohol intake. In men, the high-drinking group had a higher risk of diabetes than the non-drinking group (OR, 1.41; P=0.058). In women, the Moderate-drinking group had a lower risk of diabetes compared to the non-drinking group (OR, 0.42; P=0.039). The high-drinking group had a higher risk of diabetes than the non-drinking group (OR, 2.97; P=0.034). The group that consumed more than the WHO's daily alcohol intake risk standard tended to have a higher risk of diabetes than the group that did not (OR, 5.48; P=0.001). This study suggest that moderate alcohol consumption reduce the risk of developing diabetes, and high alcohol consumption increase the risk of developing diabetes.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.38 no.2
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• pp.175-181
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• 2005

Objectives: This study estimated the burden of disease due to high alcohol consumption using DALY, a composite indicator recently developed by the Global Burden of Disease study group. The results were analyzed by age and sex. Methods: Firstly, high alcohol consumption-related diseases, and their relative risk (RR), were selected. Secondly, population attributable fractions (PAFs) were computed using formulae, including the relative risk (RR) and prevalence of exposure (Pe). Thirdly, the DALYs of high alcohol consumption-related diseases were estimated. Lastly, the attributable burdens of diseases due to high alcohol consumption wereconcluded as being the sum of the products that multiplied the DALYs of high alcohol consumption-related diseases by their population attributable fraction (PAF). Results : The burden of high alcohol consumption in Korea was 2992.3 person years (PYs) per 100,000 persons in men, and 1426.6 in women. For men, the high alcohol consumption-induced diseases with the five biggest burdens were liver cirrhosis, hypertensive disease, liver cancer, cerebral infarction and intracerebral hemorrhage. For women, these were cerebral infarction, intracerebral hemorrhage, hypertensive disease, liver cirrhosis and liver cancer. Conclusion: This study highlighted the attributable fraction of diseases due to exposure to high alcohol consumption, by quantifying the results of exposure to risk factors. Therefore, it is now possible to assess interventions for risk factors in quantifiable terms in each population. Finally, measuring the risk factor burdens was expected to contribute to priority setting and effective resource allocation in public health policy.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.41 no.3
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• pp.232-241
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• 2008

Moderate alcohol consumption has been known to be associated with reduced risk for coronary heart disease (CHD). We assessed the association between alcohol consumption and CHD-related risk factors [hypertension, diabetes mellitus (DM) , high total cholesterol, high triglyceride (TG), low HDL-cholesterol (HDL-C), and high LDL-cholesterol (LDL-C)] in Korean. After excluding those with extreme intake values, the number of final subjects included in the analysis was 4,662 Korean adults aged over 20 years (1,961 men, 2,701 women) who participate in the 2005 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The subjects were divided into four or five groups; none-alcohol consumption group, moderate alcohol consumption group (<15 or 15.0-29.9 g/d), heavy alcohol consumption group (30-69.9 g/d or ${\geq}$ 70 g/d in men, ${\geq}$ 30 g/d in women). Odds ratios (ORs) were estimated from logistic regression adjusting for potential covariates. Alcohol consumption was inversely associated with low HDL-C in both men and women. However, heavy alcohol intake (${\geq}$ 70 g/d) significantly increased risk for hypertension, DM, and hypertriglyceridemia in men. The frequency of alcohol intake was also associated with CHD risk. The risk for low HDLC was decreased with alcohol consumption (${\geq}$ 1 times/wk), but frequent alcohol intake (${\geq}$ 4 times/wk) increased the risk for hypertension. This study revealed that moderate alcohol consumption has protective effect on CHD-related risk factors in Korean population.

• Korean Journal of Social Welfare
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• v.67 no.1
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• pp.165-187
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• 2015

This study was designed to examine the influence of social-environment factors on high risk alcohol consumption. The study analyzed 229 local areas throughout Korea. Main variables included high risk alcohol consumption and environment factors such as population structure, liquor stores. For exploring the problem drinking, geographically weighted regression(GWR) using the geographic information system(GIS) was utilized to analysis. Major findings are rate of perceived stress, number of restaurants and bars. Especially problem drinking were influenced restaurants and bars, and the form or aim of restaurants and bars had differentiability to the problem drinking. These results have implication about the regulation policy of alcohol availability for prevention of alcohol related problems.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.13 no.5
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• pp.425-433
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• 2019

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: The International Agency for Research on Cancer defined alcohol beverages and acetaldehyde derived from alcoholic beverages as a Group 1 carcinogen to humans. However, the association between alcohol consumption and gastric cancer risk has been controversial in Korean. We assessed the relationship between alcohol consumption and gastric cancer risk in Korea through a case-control study. SUBJECTS/METHODS: From 2 hospitals, a total of 316 cases with gastric cancer (208 men, 108 women) were selected and matched to 316 controls by sex and age (${\pm}5years$) during the same duration. The current status, frequency, and amount of alcohol consumption for a year three years ago were assessed by trained interviewers. RESULTS: Alcohol consumption status and frequency did not show any significant association with gastric cancer risk. However, high alcohol consumption (${\geq}20g/day$ for women or ${\geq}40g/day$ for men) significantly increased the risk of gastric cancer (odds ratio (OR) 1.73; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.05-2.85). Gastric cancer risk was strongly positively associated with alcohol consumption of ${\geq}20g/day$, especially in women (OR 5.62; 95% CI 1.32-23.81). CONCLUSION: The results from this study suggest that excessive alcohol consumption rather than the current status or frequency of alcohol consumption contributes to the increased risk of gastric cancer, especially in women.

• Journal of the Korean Dietetic Association
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.83-104
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• 2019

Elevated high-sensitivity C reactive protein (hs-CRP) levels and metabolic syndrome are considered important predictors of cardiovascular mortality. This study examined the influence of the alcohol consumption level on the hs-CRP level and the prevalence of metabolic syndrome in South Koreans. The study subjects were 3,884 participants (${\geq}19$ years) from the KNHANES in 2015. The subjects were divided into four groups according to their alcohol consumption; None (none-alcohol consumption), Low (less than 15 g/day), Medium (15~29.9 g/day), and High (over than 30 g/day). The odds ratio for high-risk hs-CRP of men was significantly lower in the Low or Medium groups compared to the None group. In women, the odds ratio for high-risk hs-CRP was not decreased in the Low or Medium groups but was significantly higher in the High group than in the None group. Compared to nondrinkers, the prevalence of metabolic syndrome was lower in the Low group and Medium group in both men and women, whereas it was significantly higher in the High group in men only. In particular, the prevalence of low HDL-cholesterol was lower in all drinking groups. When the confounding factors were adjusted, the odds ratio for low HDL-cholesterol appeared to decline in the Low groups in both men and women. On the other hand, in the Medium group, women showed an elevated odds ratios of high blood pressure (HBP) and high fasting plasma glucose but men showed an elevated odds ratios of HBP and high triglyceride levels. The overall results suggest that low alcohol consumption is more appropriate than medium alcohol consumption. Nevertheless, more study will be needed to evaluate the appropriate alcohol consumption level.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.40-48
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• 2003

This study was conducted to investigate the relationship between alcohol consumption, physical activity and breast cancer risk in Korean women. Newly histologically identified cases (N = 108) were selected at Hanyang and Soonchunhyang University Hospitals in Seoul, from January 1998 to August 1999. Hospital-based controls (n = 121) were the patients who visited at the same hospital in the department of plastic surgery, general surgery and opthalmology. Subjects were asked informations on demographic, reproductive, and history of breast feeding as well as physical activity, exercise habit, alcohol consumption by individual interview. Odds ratio (OR) and 95% Confidence Intervals (CI) were calculated by using unconditional logistic regression after adjusted for confounding factors. Among postmenopausal women, the risk of breast cancer increased with increasing alcohol drinking: relative risk for the highest group ( $\geq$ 150 g per week) compared with the lowest group (never drinking) was 2.05 (CI=1.74-3.79). Association of exercise and high physical activity for breast cancer appeared to be limited to women with high physical index among postmenopausal women. We observed decreasing risk of breast cancer with increasing physical activity index among postmenopausal women (OR=0.49,95% CI=0.56-0.92). Results of this study support a protective effects of physical activity during adulthood for breast cancer. (Korean J Nutrition 36(1): 40-48, 2003)

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.183-191
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• 2013

Objectives: In Korea, the proportion of deaths due to alcohol is estimated at 8.9%, far exceeding the global estimate of 3.8%. Therefore, this study was performed to examine the factors associated with low-risk, moderate-risk, and high-risk drinking patterns in Korean adults and to identify target populations for prevention and control of alcohol-related diseases and deaths. Methods: We analyzed data from 230 715 Korean adults aged 19 years and older who participated in the 2009 Korean Community Health Survey. Multinomial logistic regression analysis was used to examine associations between socio-demographic and health-related factors and patterns of alcohol use. Results: A substantially larger proportion of men than women engaged in high risk (21.2% vs. 3.4%) and moderate-risk alcohol use (15.5% vs. 8.2%). In both sexes, moderate- and high-risk uses were associated with younger age, higher income, being currently employed, smoking, being overweight/obese, and good self-rated health. Conclusions: Given the large proportion of the population that is engaging in moderate- and high-risk drinking and given the social norms that support this behavior, public health policies and campaigns to reduce alcohol consumption targeting the entire population are indicated.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.145-158
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• 2024

Purpose: Although smoking and alcohol consumption are known risk factors for gastric cancer (GC), studies assessing their effects on early-onset GC are limited. In this nationwide, population-based, prospective cohort study, we assessed the effects of smoking and alcohol consumption on early-onset GC in patients aged <50 years. Materials and Methods: We analyzed data of patients aged 20-39 years who underwent cancer and general health screening in the Korean National Health Screening Program between 2009 and 2012. We calculated the adjusted hazard ratios (aHR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for GC incidence until December 2020. Results: We enrolled 6,793,699 individuals (men:women=4,077,292:2,716,407) in this cohort. The mean duration of follow-up was 9.4 years. During follow-up, 9,893 cases of GC (men:women=6,304:3,589) were reported. Compared with the aHRs (95% CI) of never-smokers, those of former and current-smokers were 1.121 (1.044-1.205) and 1.282 (1.212-1.355), respectively. Compared with the aHRs (95% CI) of non-consumers, those of low-moderate- and high-risk alcohol consumers were 1.095 (1.046-1.146) and 1.212 (1.113-1.321), respectively. GC risk was the highest in current-smokers and high-risk alcohol consumers (1.447 [1.297-1.615]). Interestingly, alcohol consumption and smoking additively increased the GC risk in men but not in women (P_interaction=0.002). Conclusion: Smoking and alcohol consumption are significant risk factors for early-onset GC in young Koreans. Further studies are needed to investigate sex-based impact of alcohol consumption and smoking on GC incidence in young individuals.