The high heterogeneity of the study is one of the most significant limitations of this meta-analysis. This heterogeneity may be attributed to differences in the ages and sample sizes of the women investigated, as well as the various years during which the studies were conducted. Another limitation is that the inclusion criteria were restricted to studies published in English, potentially resulting in the omission of studies published in other languages. Several studies were also excluded due to non-reporting of odds ratios or non-reporting of odds ratios by gender.
Quality assessment
Future research is needed to examine how these various disparities may be interrelated. This socioeconomic status paradox has been studied mostly outside of the United States and has been observed for a variety of alcohol outcomes. National survey data show greater prevalence of DSM-IV AUD among White women compared to other racial/ethnic groups. However, many of these differences did not appear to be statistically significant. Taking into account standard error, the clearest differences were observed among White, Black, and Latina women, the three largest groups. DSM-IV alcohol abuse prevalence was higher in White women compared to Black women before midlife (younger than age 45), and higher than DSM-IV alcohol abuse prevalence of Latinas in all but the oldest age group (ages 65 and older).
- Women have increased their alcohol consumption at a higher rate than men, particularly their heavy drinking days — those when they have four or more drinks within a couple hours, she noted.
- However, efforts devoted to improving health care access and quality will yield limited gains so long as stress and social stigmatization among minority populations persist, and profound differences in neighborhood conditions and available opportunities remain.
- Unfortunately, women are prone to several conditions that may tempt them to overindulge in alcohol.
- Although research on alcohol-related disparities among women is a highly understudied area, evidence shows that racial/ethnic minority women, sexual minority women, and women of low socioeconomic status (based on education, income, or residence in disadvantaged neighborhoods) are more likely to experience alcohol-related problems.
- Thus, it is not clear whether these findings (especially those based on data collected from the early 2000s) accurately reflect DSM-5 AUD patterns among women, as the latter have not yet been examined.
Health, Morbidity, and Mortality
Taken together, sex-related differences highlight the complexity of this chronic disease in women and underscore the relevance of examining the roles of age, drinking patterns, duration of abstinence, medical history, and psychiatric comorbidities in defining and understanding alcohol-related cognitive impairment. Risks vs. Benefits Women who drink heavily (five or more drinks on the same occasion on five or more days per month) are more likely than men to develop liver disease (including hepatitis and cirrhosis) and to suffer from alcohol-induced brain damage. And when compared to women who either don’t drink or drink in moderation, women who drink heavily are also at increased risk of developing breast cancer, osteoporosis, heart disease and reproductive issues, including infertility. Yet as much as we hear about the risks of alcohol, it also seems there are a growing number of studies highlighting the benefits of that glass of red wine. Dr. Grant says, “Yes, for some people, low doses of alcohol can increase attentiveness and activity and may reduce the risk of developing heart disease. “But, that doesn’t mean these health benefits outweigh the risk of developing an alcohol use disorder if someone engages regularly in heavy drinking, particularly in younger adults.” Sex differences were speculated to be due to myriad factors including Brain Changes Associated With Long-Term Ketamine Abuse, A Systematic Review PMC drinking patterns and alcohol-related pharmacokinetics.
Cooper says enrolling in a 90-day residential treatment program in 2018 drastically changed her own perception of who is affected by addiction. She found herself surrounded by other women in their 20s who also struggled with alcohol and other drugs. Perhaps most concerning is that the rising gender equality in alcohol use doesn’t extend to the recognition or treatment of alcohol disorders, Sugarman says.
Ozempic has a surprising side effect: Drinking less alcohol
The victims are believed to have consumed drinks tainted with methanol, which is sometimes added to mixed-drinks at disreputable bars as a cheaper alternative to ethanol, but can cause severe poisoning or death. If you drink a lot, the NHS says you should ask your GP to check your liver proactively. The results obtained from this study were analyzed using the Comprehensive Meta-Analysis software (Version 2). The Begg and Mazumdar rank correlation test, was also conducted at a significance level of 0.1.
People may also be more likely to engage in certain health risk behaviors because of individual factors, such as when they drink excessively. This can put a person at risk of becoming ill, getting injured, or dying sooner. Excessive alcohol use increases your risk of developing a disease, getting injured, or dying sooner.
Any kind of alcohol in any amount can harm a developing fetus, especially during the first and second trimester. Physicians and public health officials recommend that women avoid drinking any alcohol during pregnancy. Plus, women have a “telescoping,” or accelerated, course of alcohol dependence, meaning that they generally advance from their first drink to their first alcohol-related problem to the need for treatment more quickly than men. Certainly, no one should feel obliged to start drinking for the health benefits.
But those same light-to-moderate drinkers also tend to have healthier behaviors such as regular exercise, lower rates of smoking and maintaining a lower body weight. When Aragam and his colleagues adjusted for those factors, any protective associations with alcohol pretty much disappeared. If they can’t give up alcohol all together, women and men might see health benefits just from cutting down on their drinking, said Dr. Krishna Aragam, co-author of the recent JAMA Network Open investigation that found no amount of alcohol was protective against heart disease. Between 2019 and 2020, the rate of alcohol-related deaths rose about 25%, reflecting the “hidden tolls of the pandemic,” such as increased drinking to cope with pandemic-related stress, researchers reported in JAMA Network Open in May. For context, the death rate for all causes of death increased 16.5% during this time frame.