Home drinking in women over 30 years of age. Findings from an internet survey in England

Objectives There has been a significant shift away from drinking in pubs and bars toward greater alcohol consumption at home. This study investigates the factors associated with hazardous drinking among women who drink at home.Methods A web-based survey of women >30 years (N = 411) were recruited from a university staff address book and web sites such as Mumsnet. Sociodemographic characteristics, alcohol consumption (AUDIT), purchasing patterns, and motivations for home drinking (HDAS) were assessed. A cutoff AUDIT score of ≥ 6 was used to define hazardous drinking (HD). Logistic regression analysis determined factors associated with hazardous drinking.Results Nearly two thirds of the sample (65.7%) of the sample reported HD. Factors identified with HD included drinking at home everyday, purchasing alcohol as part of weekly shopping and preferring to drink at home.Conclusions These factors could be used to develop approaches to encourage women to reflect on their alcohol use behaviors.