Changes in alcohol consumption among medical students during the COVID-19 pandemic – results from POLLEK study

• Authors: Maksymilian Gajda , Szymon Szemik , Małgorzata Kowalska

Abstracts

EN

Objectives Social distancing and remote learning as one of the ways to fight against COVID-19 pandemic have affected universities and changed the lifestyle of many students. Psychoactive substances use was one of the way to deal with the anxiety caused by these new settings. Studies published so far have not provided a clear answer on whether COVID-19 leads to changes in the structure of alcohol consumption among medical students. The presented study attempted to answer this question based on the data available from the POLLEK study. Material and Methods The study group included 3 separate groups of medical students (recruited in the following academic years: 2019/2020, 2020/2021, and 2021/2022) with a total number of 899 students. To assess the characteristics of alcohol consumption the authors used a Polish version of the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT). Results Students surveyed during the lockdown lived in the family home much more often, reported good health, and declared consumption of a smaller number of alcoholic beverages. Their AUDIT scores were statistically significantly (p = 0.04) lower compared to the group surveyed before the pandemic (5 vs. 6, respectively). There were no significant differences in the AUDIT results between other study periods. Conclusions Lockdown due to COVID-19 pandemic might be associated with a decrease in alcohol intake among medical students. This may be due to a different place of residence of students, a family home rather than a dormitory. However, the debate on this topic seems to be still open.

Keywords

EN

medical students; alcohol consumption; questionnaire study; COVID-19; pandemic; AUDIT

• Publisher: Instytut Medycyny Pracy im. prof. dra Jerzego Nofera w Łodzi
• Journal: International Journal of Occupational Medicine and Environmental Health
• Year: 2023
• Volume: 36
• Issue: 3
• Pages: 406-416

Dates

published

2023

Contributors

author

Maksymilian Gajda

• Medical University of Silesia, Katowice, Poland (Department of Epidemiology, School of Medicine in Katowice)

author

Szymon Szemik

• Medical University of Silesia, Katowice, Poland (Department of Epidemiology, School of Medicine in Katowice)

author

Małgorzata Kowalska

• Medical University of Silesia, Katowice, Poland (Department of Epidemiology, School of Medicine in Katowice)

Identifiers

DOI

10.13075/ijomeh.1896.02158

Biblioteka Nauki

21375683