Volume of alcohol consumption

The following drinking categories were defined for further analysis (Rehm et al., 2004):

• Abstainer: a person not having had a drink containing alcohol within the last year;
• Average volume drinking category I: for females 0-19.99g pure alcohol daily; for males 0-39.99g pure alcohol daily;
• Average volume drinking category II: for females 20-39.99g pure alcohol daily; for males 40-59.99g pure alcohol daily; and
• Average volume drinking category III: for females 40g or more pure alcohol daily; for males 60g or more pure alcohol daily.

Category II and III drinking are considered as hazardous drinking (Chisholm et al., 2004).

Drinking patterns

Patterns of drinking are more difficult to describe than the total volume of alcohol consumption (Rehm et al., 2004). There is not one single element that defines drinking patterns. Therefore, drinking patterns are measured in a variety of ways. Many different indicators are used, such as the drinking context, frequency of drinking, and the frequency of episodic heavy drinking (Anderson & Baumberg, 2006). To determine drinking patterns for the Comparative Quantification of Health Risks, the WHO used values based on the following variables (Rehm et al., 2004):

• heavy drinking occasions (e.g. binge drinking);
• drinking with meals; and
• drinking in public places.