Alcohol Use of German Adults during Different Pandemic Phases: Repeated Cross-Sectional Analyses in the COVID-19 Snapshot Monitoring Study (COSMO)

Melanie Koeger, Hannah Schillok, Stephan Voss, Michaela Coenen, Christina Merkel, Caroline Jung-Sievers and On behalf of the COSMO Study Team
Additional contact information
Melanie Koeger: Institute for Medical Information Processing, Biometry, and Epidemiology—IBE, Chair of Public Health and Health Services Research, LMU Munich, Elisabeth-Winterhalter-Weg 6, 81377 Munich, Germany
Hannah Schillok: Institute for Medical Information Processing, Biometry, and Epidemiology—IBE, Chair of Public Health and Health Services Research, LMU Munich, Elisabeth-Winterhalter-Weg 6, 81377 Munich, Germany
Stephan Voss: Institute for Medical Information Processing, Biometry, and Epidemiology—IBE, Chair of Public Health and Health Services Research, LMU Munich, Elisabeth-Winterhalter-Weg 6, 81377 Munich, Germany
Michaela Coenen: Institute for Medical Information Processing, Biometry, and Epidemiology—IBE, Chair of Public Health and Health Services Research, LMU Munich, Elisabeth-Winterhalter-Weg 6, 81377 Munich, Germany
Christina Merkel: Federal Centre for Health Education (BZgA), Maarweg 149-161, 50825 Cologne, Germany
Caroline Jung-Sievers: Institute for Medical Information Processing, Biometry, and Epidemiology—IBE, Chair of Public Health and Health Services Research, LMU Munich, Elisabeth-Winterhalter-Weg 6, 81377 Munich, Germany
On behalf of the COSMO Study Team: COSMO Study Team are listed in the acknowledgments.

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 9, 1-17

Abstract: There is little evidence on how different COVID-19 pandemic phases influence the alcohol use behaviour of adults. The objective of this study is to investigate alcohol use frequency over different COVID-19 pandemic phases and to identify vulnerable subgroups for risky use behaviour in the German adult population. Survey waves of 14/15 April 2020 ( n = 1032), 23/24 June 2020 ( n = 993), and 26/27 January 2021 ( n = 1001) from the COVID-19 Snapshot Monitoring (COSMO) were analysed. The mean age was 46 ± 15.3 years in April, 46 ± 15.5 years in June, and 45 ± 15.5 years in January. The gender ratio was mostly equal in each survey wave. Descriptive analyses and univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses for individuals with increased alcohol use frequency (AUF) were performed. 13.2% in April (lockdown), 11.3% in June (easement), and 8.6% in January (lockdown) of participants showed an increased AUF. Individuals with perceived burden, high frustration levels due to protective measures, and young to middle-aged adults were more likely to increase their AUF during different pandemic phases. In conclusion, unfavourable alcohol behaviour might occur as a potentially maladaptive coping strategy in pandemics. Because of potential negative long-term consequences of problematic alcohol use behaviour on health, public health strategies should consider mental health consequences and target addictive behaviour, while also guiding risk groups towards healthy coping strategies such as physical activities during pandemics/crises.

Keywords: COVID-19; alcohol use; lockdown; health behaviours; coping strategies; substance use (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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