Population-level risks of alcohol consumption by amount, geography, age, sex, and year: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2020
Dana Bryazka, Marissa B Reitsma, Max Griswold, Kalkidan Hassen Abate, Cristiana Abbafati, Mohsen Abbasi‐Kangevari, Zeinab Abbasi-Kangevari, Amir Abdoli, Mohammad Abdollahı, Abu Yousuf Md Abdullah, E S Abhilash, Eman Abu‐Gharbieh, Juan Acuña, Giovanni Addolorato, Oladimeji Adebayo, Victor Adekanmbi, Kishor Adhikari, Sangeet Adhikari, Qorinah Estiningtyas Sakilah Adnani, Saira Afzal, Wubetu Yimam Agegnehu, Manik Aggarwal, Bright Opoku Ahinkorah, Araz Ramazan Ahmad, Sajjad Ahmad, Tauseef Ahmad, Ali Ahmadi, Sepideh Ahmadi, Haroon Ahmed, Tarik A. Rashid, Chisom Joyqueenet Akunna, Hanadi Al Hamad, Md. Zakiul Alam, Dejene Tsegaye Alem, Kefyalew Addis Alene, Yousef Alimohamadi, Atiyeh Alizadeh, Kasim Allel, Jordi Alonso, Saba Alvand, Nelson Alvis‐Guzmán, Firehiwot Amare, Edward Kwabena Ameyaw, Sohrab Amiri, Robert Ancuceanu, Jason A Anderson, Cătălina Liliana Andrei, Tudorel Andrei, Jalal Arabloo, Muhammad Arshad, Anton A Artamonov, Zahra Aryan, Malke Asaad, Mulusew Andualem Asemahagn, Thomas Astell‐Burt, Seyyed Shamsadin Athari, Desta Debalkie Atnafu, Prince Atorkey, Alok Atreya, Floriane Ausloos, Marcel Ausloos, Getinet Ayano, Martin Amogre Ayanore, Olatunde Ayinde, José Luís Ayuso‐Mateos, Sina Azadnajafabad, Melkalem Mamuye Azanaw, Mohammadreza Azangou‐Khyavy, Amirhossein Azari Jafari, Ahmed Y. Azzam, Ashish Badiye, Nasser Bagheri, Sara Bagherieh, Mohan Bairwa, Shankar M Bakkannavar, Ravleen Kaur Bakshi, Awraris Hailu Bilchut, Till Bärnighausen, Fabio Barra, Amadou Barrow, Pritish Baskaran, Luı́s Belo, Derrick Bennett, Isabela M. Benseñor, Akshaya Srikanth Bhagavathula, Neeraj Bhala, Ashish Bhalla, Nikha Bhardwaj, Pankaj Bhardwaj, Sonu Bhaskar, Krittika Bhattacharyya, Vijayalakshmi S Bhojaraja, Bagas Suryo Bintoro, Elena A Elena Blokhina, Belay Boda Abule Bodicha, Archith Boloor, Cristina Bosetti, Dejana Braithwaite, Hermann Brenner, Н. И. Брико
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The health risks associated with moderate alcohol consumption continue to be debated. Small amounts of alcohol might lower the risk of some health outcomes but increase the risk of others, suggesting that the overall risk depends, in part, on background disease rates, which vary by region, age, sex, and year. METHODS: For this analysis, we constructed burden-weighted dose-response relative risk curves across 22 health outcomes to estimate the theoretical minimum risk exposure level (TMREL) and non-drinker equivalence (NDE), the consumption level at which the health risk is equivalent to that of a non-drinker, using disease rates from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2020 for 21 regions, including 204 countries and territories, by 5-year age group, sex, and year for individuals aged 15-95 years and older from 1990 to 2020. Based on the NDE, we quantified the population consuming harmful amounts of alcohol. FINDINGS: The burden-weighted relative risk curves for alcohol use varied by region and age. Among individuals aged 15-39 years in 2020, the TMREL varied between 0 (95% uncertainty interval 0-0) and 0·603 (0·400-1·00) standard drinks per day, and the NDE varied between 0·002 (0-0) and 1·75 (0·698-4·30) standard drinks per day. Among individuals aged 40 years and older, the burden-weighted relative risk curve was J-shaped for all regions, with a 2020 TMREL that ranged from 0·114 (0-0·403) to 1·87 (0·500-3·30) standard drinks per day and an NDE that ranged between 0·193 (0-0·900) and 6·94 (3·40-8·30) standard drinks per day. Among individuals consuming harmful amounts of alcohol in 2020, 59·1% (54·3-65·4) were aged 15-39 years and 76·9% (73·0-81·3) were male. INTERPRETATION: There is strong evidence to support recommendations on alcohol consumption varying by age and location. Stronger interventions, particularly those tailored towards younger individuals, are needed to reduce the substantial global health loss attributable to alcohol. FUNDING: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.