Alcohol Consumption: A Different Kind of Canadian Mosaic (Quantitative Research) (Report‪)‬

In Can j Public Health 2010;101(4):275-80. n Canada, health and social problems resulting from alcohol consumption are becoming a concern. Over the last decade, both the annual volume of consumption and high-risk drinking have increased. (1-4) Consequently, in order to avoid a proliferation of alcohol-related damages, effective recommendations are needed. While commonly reported numeric measures of alcohol consumption are accurate predictors of various problems, they are limited in their scope to help understand the drinking act and its relationships to alcohol-related harm. (5,6) Yet, this could be improved if more thought were given to the qualitative dimensions of drinking such as the types of beverages consumed and the circumstances surrounding the drinking act. Drinking occasions, characterized by relational, temporal, circumstantial and locational dimensions, represent a distinct social world that has its own norms and, as such, influence drinking outcome. (7-10) For instance, the probability for heavy drinking is generally higher in bars, discos or taverns than in restaurants or homes. (11-16) Accordingly, drinking in a bar is associated with acute social consequences such as suicide, violence, motor vehicle and other accidents. (17,18) By contrast, light drinking with meals may be associated with improved cardiac functioning and reduced risk of heart attack. (19)