Korean J Fam Pract 2019; 9(3): 297-302  https://doi.org/10.21215/kjfp.2019.9.3.297
Association between Alcohol Consumption and Mental Health (Perceived Stress, Depressive Mood, Suicidal Ideation, Quality of Life) in Koreans: The Sixth Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey in 2015
Hye-Young Lee, Yeon Ji Lee*, Ji-Ho Choi, Choon-Young Kim, Soo-Yeon Lee, Da-Hye Jeong, Yeon-Jun Choi
Department of Family Medicine, Inha University College of Medicine, Incheon, Korea
Yeon Ji Lee
Tel: +82-32-890-3547, Fax: +82-32-890-2195
E-mail: dawndusk@naver.com
Received: August 14, 2018; Revised: October 31, 2018; Accepted: November 29, 2018; Published online: June 20, 2019.
© The Korean Academy of Family Medicine. All rights reserved.

This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0) which permits unrestricted noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Abstract
Background: Causal hypotheses suggest that alcohol-related disorders may also cause psychiatric disorders and problems, or vice versa. The association between alcohol consumption and mental health is important from both research and therapeutic viewpoints. Therefore, we aimed to analyze the association between alcohol consumption and mental health (perceived stress, depressive mood, suicidal ideation, quality of life) in Korean adults over 19 years old.
Methods: We finally included 5,399 adults who had participated in the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey in 2015, and analyzed the association between alcohol consumption and mental health, using logistic regression.
Results: Perceived stress was associated with alcohol consumption in problem drinkers (odds ratio [OR]=1.35, 95% confidence interval [CI]=1.13–1.61). Depressive mood was associated with alcohol consumption in moderate and problem drinkers (OR=0.90, 95% CI=0.71–1.11 and OR=1.35, 95% CI=1.06–1.70, respectively). Suicidal ideation was not associated with alcohol consumption in moderate and problem drinkers (P=0.063 and P=0.068, respectively). Quality of life was associated with alcohol consumption in moderate and problem drinkers (OR=0.48, 95% CI=0.41–0.57 and OR=0.77, 95% CI=0.66–0.92, respectively).
Conclusion: We found that moderate drinkers have a lower risk of depressive mood and a higher quality of life as compared to low drinkers. However, problem drinkers have a higher quality of life but a higher risk of perceived stress and depressive mood as compared to low drinkers.
Keywords: Alcohols; Mental Health; Perceived Stress; Depressive Mood; Suicidal Ideation; Quality of Life
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