Observational studyAddiction (Abingdon, England)2021
Cross-country differences in age trends in alcohol consumption among older adults: a cross-sectional study of individuals aged 50 years and older in 22 countries.
Observational study in Addiction (Abingdon, England), 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
16 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 44 citations in OpenAlex.
- Domiciliary Carers' Perspectives on Alcohol Use by Older Adults in Their Care: A Systematic Review and Thematic Synthesis of Qualitative Studies.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2024Pooled it
- Alcohol use, dementia risk, and sex: a systematic review and assessment of alcohol-attributable dementia cases in Europe.BMC geriatrics · 2023Pooled it
- Understanding How and Why Alcohol Interventions Prevent and Reduce Problematic Alcohol Consumption among Older Adults: A Systematic Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Pooled it
- Prediction of alcohol consumption: The role of genetics, impulsivity, and sensation seeking from adolescence to adulthood.Drug and alcohol dependence · 2026Article
- Longitudinal changes in alcohol use across 20 years of adulthood: a U.S. National daily diary study.Aging & mental health · 2026Article
- Demographic variation in weekly alcohol use across countries in the Global Flourishing Study.Communications medicine · 2026Article
- Genetic and environmental influences on alcohol consumption in middle to late life.Psychology of addictive behaviors : journal of the Society of Psychologists in Addictive Behaviors · 2025Article
- Physical activity in older adults as a predictor of alcohol consumption - a longitudinal analysis of 3133 individuals in the SHARE study.European psychiatry : the journal of the Association of European Psychiatrists · 2025Article
- A Narrative Review of Alcohol Prevention Interventions Among Older Adults.Alcohol research : current reviews · 2025Review
- Primary Care Professionals' Empathy and Its Relationship to Approaching Patients with Risky Alcohol Consumption.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- The effect of alcohol consumption on all-cause mortality in 70-year-olds in the context of other lifestyle risk factors: results from the Gothenburg H70 birth cohort study.BMC geriatrics · 2023Article
- Prevalence of smoking, alcohol consumption, and drug abuse in Iranian adults: Results of Azar Cohort Study.Health promotion perspectives · 2023Article
- Article
- Drug Use among the Elderly Assisted by the Psychosocial Assistance Center in District Federal-Brasilia.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- Alcohol consumption and associations with sociodemographic and health-related characteristics in Germany: A population survey.Addictive behaviors · 2022Article
- Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 2 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND
aimsAge-related changes in physiological, metabolic and medication profiles make alcohol consumption likely to be more harmful among older than younger adults. This study aimed to estimate cross-national variation in the quantity and patterns of drinking throughout older age, and to investigate country-level variables explaining cross-national variation in consumption for individuals aged 50 years and older.
designCross-sectional observational study using previously harmonized survey data.
settingTwenty-two countries surveyed in 2010 or the closest available year.
participantsA total of 106 180 adults aged 50 years and over. MEASUREMENTS: Cross-national variation in age trends were estimated for two outcomes: weekly number of standard drink units (SDUs) and patterns of alcohol consumption (never, ever, occasional, moderate and heavy drinking). Human Development Index and average prices of vodka were used as country-level variables moderating age-related declines in drinking.
findingsAlcohol consumption was negatively associated with age (risk ratio = 0.98; 95% confidence interval = 0.97, 0.99; P-value < 0.001), but there was substantial cross-country variation in the age-related differences in alcohol consumption [likelihood ratio (LR) test P-value < 0.001], even after adjusting for the composition of populations. Countries' development level and alcohol prices explained 31% of cross-country variability in SDUs (LR test P-value < 0.001) but did not explain cross-country variability in the prevalence of heavy drinkers.
conclusionsUse and harmful use of alcohol among older adults appears to vary widely across age and countries. This variation can be partly explained both by the country-specific composition of populations and country-level contextual factors such as development level and alcohol prices.
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Registered trials
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