Changes in Alcohol Use and Distress in Non-drinkers

This study investigated whether nonor occasional drinkers’ changes in drinking habits during a one-year period were related to psychological distress. Overall, 2,495 nonor occasional drinking employees (2,109 men and 386 women) completed a self-administered questionnaire measuring alcohol intake, psychological distress (12-item General Health Questionnaire), and demographic characteristics at baseline and one-year follow-up. They also completed a Web-based version of the Brief Job Stress Questionnaire to assess job stressors at baseline. Participants were categorized into three groups (stable nonor occasional drinkers; new light drinkers; new moderate drinkers) according to weekly alcohol consumption at follow-up (males 0 g/wk, 1–79 g/wk, and ≥80 g/wk; females 0 g/wk, 1–39 g/wk, and ≥40 g/wk, respectively); multiple logistic regression analyses were conducted by sex. Among only male participants, both stable nonor occasional drinkers and new moderate drinkers showed significantly higher odds ratios for psychological distress at followup than new light drinkers after adjusting for demographic characteristics, job stressors, and psychological distress at baseline (adjusted odds ratios of 1.72 and 1.99, respectively). These findings suggest that men who started to drink 80 g or more alcohol per week during the one-year follow-up period should have been monitored for psychological distress.