The sooner we can intervene to assist individuals in limiting their use of alcohol as a means of coping with this pandemic’s myriad stressors, the better chance we have of preventing severe psychosocial and health consequences of overuse of alcohol and an increase in AUD as an important comorbidity of COVID-19. Are there approaches that can be implemented in the USA to moderate and reduce rising alcohol consumption in the face of this pandemic? Recognition of the population risk of increased https://sober-house.org/ alcohol consumption is a first step and the intervention approach must be multifaceted. Public health messaging, early intervention, and access to treatment are key components and include primary care treatment integration, collaborative care coordination, adequate insurance and reimbursement, and expanded use of telehealth and other virtual platforms. We’ve also seen more people end up in hospitals due to alcohol misuse and its consequences, including withdrawal symptoms and liver disease.
For example, some research suggests that poor sleep can make long COVID worse, and difficulty sleeping is a common side effect of drinking alcohol. Researchers compared the number of alcohol-related deaths in 2019 against the number of similar deaths in 2020. The incidence of alcohol-related death was then compared with all other causes of death during that period of time.
- While flattening the curve is the nation’s priority right now, we understand that the unique needs of an individual battling alcoholism are equally as urgent—maybe even more so during this time of social distancing and home quarantines.
- There is also widespread social disruption and isolation, while at the same time, social support and access to medical care have been delayed or limited due to stay-at-home orders and COVID-19 restrictions.
- During this time, it’s important to acknowledge and understand these challenges that you may face in order to avoid using alcohol to self-medicate, potentially increasing certain COVID-19 related risks.
- The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism defines moderate drinking as up to one drink per day for women and up to two drinks per day for men.
- This may cause some people to consume more alcohol than they usually would.
The remaining six studies (11.3%) used existing data and performed a time-series analysis linked to substance use (Glober et al., 2020, Leichtle et al., 2020, Marais et al., 2020, Ochalek et al., 2020, Slavova et al., 2020, Wainwright et al., 2020). The last but not the least is the reverse analysis – how alcohol use disorder may influence the way of dealing with the pandemic from the personal safety perspective. Considering the scale of its consequences and the huge stress-related burden, COVID-19 pandemic can be considered as a mass trauma, which can lead to psychological problems, health behavior changes, and addictive issues, including alcohol consumption [16,17]. Alcohol abuse can also lead to various issues with your cardiopulmonary system (i.e., heart and lungs).
Fight coronavirus (COVID- transmission at home
This Canadian study was the only study to exclusively report a decrease in substance use because of the pandemic. One study reported that patients and residential patients with ongoing or previous substance use disorders reported low cravings (Martinotti et al., 2020). Two studies reported a statistically significant role of the level of education in increasing alcohol use during lockdown. Specific factors of the increase in alcohol use were reported in one study as a high level of education (Rolland et al., 2020) and in another that college graduates had significantly lower odds of decreased alcohol consumption compared to people who were not graduates (Knell et al., 2020).
Consuming any alcohol poses health risks, but consuming high-strength ethyl alcohol (ethanol), particularly if it has been adulterated with methanol, can result in severe health consequences, including death. Also, during the period of shelter-in-place orders, children may have been exposed to unhealthy behaviors related to alcohol use. This could influence their future risk for problem drinking, AUD, and health problems related to alcohol use. According to the false information circulated recently, the ingestion of alcohol would have helped to destroy the SARS-CoV-2 virus. There is no medical basis to support this fact, on the contrary, alcohol abuse weakens the body’s protection against viral respiratory infections [78]. Other interesting examples may be the decrease of alcohol consumption in college students, after the campus closure, the main explanation being that they got back home, to live with their families, with less social events and binge drinking [46,47].
Alcohol use during the COVID-19 pandemic
This pandemic comes with severe domestic and global negative economic impacts and the length and scope of the pandemic are greater than we have seen with natural disasters and terrorist attacks, leading to prolonged stress and uncertainty. In addition to the psychological stress, stay-at-home orders that are recurring in some states based on increased case rates, uncertainties related to school re-openings, self-isolation, and quarantining can lead to additional stress, which can in turn lead to increased drinking. In line with these findings, a recently published study on alcohol consumption during the pandemic in US, conducted among 1,540 people aged between 30 and 80 years, showed that Americans drank about 14 % more alcohol this year, amid the COVID-19 pandemic compared to 2019. Thus, an alarming increase, more pronounced among women shows a 17 % increase in alcohol consumption among women and a 19 % increase among people aged between 30 and 60. According to this study, the consumption of large amounts of beverages among women – four or more drinks in two hours – has increased by 41 % this year. The increase reported for most participants translates into consuming an extra drink daily within a month [36].
Women are more likely to shoulder the burden of household tasks, caregiving, and child-rearing than men. Stay-at-home orders to stop transmission of COVID-19 led to decreased childcare support and the additional burden of remote schooling. In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic caused by the new coronavirus, alcohol consumption is a way to relax for many people, but it is important to know that alcohol can increase the vulnerability of the individual, both physically and mentally. In fact, it is possible that excessive alcohol consumption can increase the risk of developing COVID-19-induced illness, as this can affect the immune system. Five studies (11.1%) identified drug/ substance using longer questionnaires/instruments (seeTable 4). Twelve quantitative studies (26.7%) asked shorter or individual questions about self-reported frequency or behavioural changes of substance (e.g., Ballivian et al., 2020) and if any change was functionally related to the pandemic or any other reason (i.e., through stress; Czeisler et al., 2020).
How we reviewed this article:
And when faced with the unknown, even the most steadfast among us can go through periods of fear and doubt which can lead some of us to self-medicate in whatever way we feel works best. With the ongoing threat of COVID-19, it’s understandable why many may feel stressed and anxious for themselves or their loved ones. Amanda Roberts and Jim Rogers contributed to the study selection, data extraction, data analyses, and manuscript drafting. Rachael Mason, Aloysius Niroshan Siriwardena, Todd Hogue, Gregory Adam Whitley & Graham R. Law contributed to the data analyses and manuscript drafting. AR and JR contributed to the study selection, data extraction, data analyses, and manuscript drafting.
One perhaps surprising risk factor in the included studies was parental status (those with children were more likely to increase their alcohol use during the pandemic). During lockdown, many parents had to ‘home-school’ their children alongside continuing to work at home. Study authors suggest that this may have led to role overload and distress and consequently heavier drinking (Sallie et al., 2020). Mental health conditions and alcohol and substance use disorders frequently what does laced weed look like co‐occur. Data from nationwide epidemiological studies reveal that comorbidity between mental health and substance use disorders is highly prevalent (Farrell et al., 2003, Jane‐Llopis and Matytsina, 2006, Lai et al., 2015). For instance, data from the British Psychiatric Morbidity Survey implied that 30% of individuals with alcohol dependence and 45% with drug dependence also had a mental health disorder, compared with 12% of non ‐ dependent individuals (Farrell et al., 2003).
()