Alcohol and Alcoholism Advance Access originally published online on March 25, 2008
Alcohol and Alcoholism 2008 43(4):460-469; doi:10.1093/alcalc/agn018
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Childhood and Current Determinants of Heavy Drinking in Early Adulthood
1 Department of Health and Functional Capacity, National Public Health Institute (KTL), Helsinki, Finland
2 Department of Public Health, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
3 Department of Psychiatry, Helsinki University Central Hospital, Finland
4 Finnish Foundation for Alcohol Studies, Helsinki, Finland
5 Department of Mental Health and Alcohol Research, National Public Health Institute (KTL), Helsinki, Finland
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed: Department of Health and Functional Capacity, National Public Health Institute (KTL), Mannerheimintie 166, FI-00300 Helsinki, Finland. Tel.: +358-9-4744-8795; Fax: +358-9-4744-8760; E-mail: laura.kestila{at}ktl.fi
Received 6 September 2007; in revised form 15 November 2007; in revised form 22 January 2008; accepted 14 February 2008
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Abstract |
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Aims: To explore the association of parental education, childhood living conditions and several adversities with heavy drinking in early adulthood, and to analyze the effect of the respondent's current circumstances on these associations. Method: The analyses were conducted in a sample of 1234 adults aged 18–29 years participating in the Finnish Health 2000 Survey (65% of the original representative two-stage cluster sample, N = 1894). The outcome measure was heavy drinking measured by g/week for pure alcohol (for men 
280 g/week and for women 140 g/week). Results: 8% of young adult men and 5% of women were heavy drinkers. In both genders, parental alcohol problems and other childhood adversities, poor own education, and unemployment status increased the risk of heavy drinking. The impact of childhood on heavy drinking was partly independent and partly mediated by adult characteristics, in particular, for both genders, low level of education. Conclusions: Childhood adversities are associated with heavy drinking in early adulthood among both genders. Childhood social circumstances as well as low educational level and unemployment should be taken into account in planning preventive policies to tackle the harms caused by excessive alcohol use at the individual and population level.