Self-reported consumption of wine and other alcoholic beverages in a German wine area

Petra Fronk,¹ Maria Blettner,² Heinz Decker<sup>1

1</sup>Institute for Molecular Biophysics, Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, Mainz, Germany; ²Institute for Medical Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Informatics, Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, Mainz, Germany

Purpose: To describe the consumption of alcoholic beverages in a German wine area, with special attention to the number of people drinking more than the tolerable upper alcohol intake level (TUAL).
Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted using a mailed questionnaire, to investigate the weekly consumption of wine, beer, and spirits during the preceding 12 months in Mainz, the state capital of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The analysis included 948 responders aged 20–69 years.
Results: A total of 948 respondents, with a mean age of 43.7 years, were included in the analysis. About 85% of the respondents consumed alcoholic beverages, with an average of about 13.5 g alcohol/day. Men drank about twice as much as women. In total, 30% of women and 24% of men reported drinking more than the TUAL, and 9.2% of women and 7.2% of men reported drinking more than twice as much as the TUAL. The highest proportion of persons drinking more than the TUAL was found among elderly people. The preferred beverage was wine, which contributed 74% (for women) and 54% (for men) to the total alcohol intake. On average, the respondents drank 2.8 glasses of wine per week, 1.4 bottles beer, and negligible amounts of spirits.
Conclusion: Wine was the preferred alcoholic beverage in Mainz, which was expected for people living in a wine area. A rather large number of people, especially among the elderly, consumed alcohol in an amount higher than the TUAL which may be harmful to health.

Keywords: beer, spirits, TUAL, Mainz