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The Association between the Stress Relief Method and High-Risk Alcohol Drinking: The 2005 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

Background: The importance of stress relief methods is becoming an important issue in developed societies. However, no studies have examined the effects of stress relief methods on the risk of engaging in high-risk alcohol consumption. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the association between stress relief methods and high-risk alcohol consumption. Methods: This study included a total of 5,313 subjects who participated in the 2005 Korean National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey. To evaluate high-risk alcohol consumption, we used the alcohol use disorders identification test (AUDIT-K). Regarding the stress relief method, participants were divided into three groups as follows: 1) those who were non-smokers and relieved stress using methods other than smoking (Group A), 2) those who were smokers but relieved stress using methods other than smoking (Group B), and 3) those who relieved stress by smoking (Group C). Multiple logistic regression analysis was conducted to examine the association between the stress relief method and high-risk alcohol consumption. Results: The mean scores of AUDIT-K were 5.7 for Group A, 10.0 for Group B, and 11.4 for Group C (P-value<0.001). Compared to Group A, the odds ratio and 95% confidence intervals for high-risk alcohol consumption were 3.91 (1.96–7.80) for Group B and 6.26 (2.99–13.10) for Group C after adjusting for age, sex, body mass index, household income, education levels, residential area, marital status, stress levels, hypertension, diabetes, and dyslipidemia. Conclusion: We found that the participants who relieved stress by smoking had a significantly higher risk of engaging in high-risk alcohol consumption.