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Centre for Policy on Ageing | |
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| Alcohol consumption and health among elders | | Author(s) | Ana I Balsa, Jenny F Homer, Michael F Fleming |
| Journal title | The Gerontologist, vol 48, no 5, October 2008 |
| Pages | pp 622-636 |
| Source | http://www.geron.org |
| Keywords | Alcoholic beverages ; Health [elderly] ; Health services ; Usage [services] ; Indicators ; Correlation ; United States of America. |
| Annotation | This article estimates the effects of alcohol consumption on self-reported overall health status, injuries, heart problems, emergency room use, and hospitalisations among those aged over 65. The authors analysed data from the first wave of the US National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions, a nationally representative study. They used multivariate regression and instrumental variables methods to study the associations between alcohol consumption (current drinking, binge drinking, and average number of drinks consumed) and several indicators of health status and health care utilization. Alcohol consumption by women was associated with better self-perceived health status, improved cardiovascular health, and lower rates of hospitalisations. No significant negative or positive associations for older men were detected. These findings suggest that light to moderate alcohol use by older women may have beneficial health effects. However, experimental trials, however, are needed to more rigorously assess the potential benefits of alcohol use by elders due to the inherent biases of observational studies. (KJ/RH). |
| Accession Number | CPA-091215201 A |
| Classmark | YPP: CC: L: QLD: 3RI: 49: 7T |
Data © Centre for Policy on Ageing |
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| ...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing. |
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