East–west disparities in alcohol-related harm
Journal Title: Alkoholizm i Narkomania - Year 2016, Vol 29, Issue 4
Abstract
Introduction The aim of this article was to provide more insight into the role of alcohol in the east–west disparities in mortality against other socio-economic factors, and to trace and compare mortality trends in Poland to the Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania), Western Europe (EU15) and Belarus, to understand persisting health inequalities across Europe better. Methods The paper uses mostly data from the Health for All Data Base (HFA) and European Detailed Mortality Database (EDMD). The WHO Global Health Observatory (GHO) data repository was used to calculate unrecorded alcohol consumption. In particular, life expectancy and standardised mortality rates per 100 000 inhabitants aged 25–64 for circulatory system disease, chronic liver diseases and cirrhosis and external causes of injury and poisoning were analysed. Long-term trends of more than 30 years were used. For the presentation of trends, a three-year moving average was adopted. Results Since the 1970s, life expectancy in EU15 has remarkably increased compared to other parts of Europe. At the beginning of 1970s it was only 2–3 years longer than in Poland or the Baltic Republics. Recently, life expectancy for men in EU15 is 11 years longer than in Belarus, 6–10 years than in Baltics and 5 years than in Poland. Also other indicators confirm a health gap such as diseases of the circulatory system, chronic liver diseases and cirrhosis and injuries and poisoning due to alcohol. Conclusions East–west economic and social inequalities that make the physical and social environment less safe for both sober and intoxicated individuals, particularly from highly marginalised social segments, have reinforced the existing health gap.
Authors and Affiliations
Jacek Moskalewicz, Yury Razvodovsky, Łukasz Wieczorek
Keywords
Related Articles
- EP ID EP201890
- DOI 10.1016/j.alkona.2016.11.003
- Views 111
- Downloads 0
Social perception of factors impeding chances for natural recovery from addiction – a cross-cultural qualitative perspective
So far, the individual aspect of natural recovery from addiction – that is change without professional intervention or self-help groups – has been the focus of research in this area. However, individual self-change proce...
The possibilities of silymarin extract use in alcoholic liver disease – a literature review
The development of alcoholic liver disease (ALD), characterised by different degrees of liver damage, may be one of the possible effects of the long-term, excessive alcohol consumption. The treatment is based on total ab...
Używanie substancji psychoaktywnych i inne zachowania problemowe młodzieży gimnazjalnej. Zmiany pomiędzy 14. a 16. rokiem życia
Artykuł prezentuje rozpowszechnienie zachowań problemowych wśród warszawskich gimnazjalistów. Badania ankietowe objęły grupę ponad 1000 uczniów, przy losowym doborze do próby 13% klas z każdej dzielnicy. W 2002 r. badan...
Fighting alcoholism among railway workers in the light of early 20th Century Polish-language temperance publications
Introduction The temperance magazines issued between 1843 and 1914 in Polish lands and among the Polish diaspora in Germany and USA constitute a barely known, and thus rarely used, research source on the history of addi...
The change of the sense of coherence and self-efficacy of drug dependent persons treated in therapeutic community
Introduction: The sense of coherence and self-efficacy are the main of generalised resistance resources of the human being and can be treated as health factors. The main aim of this paper was an attempt to answer how the...