Abstract
Background: There is consistent evidence that the binge drinking standard of 5+ drinks per drinking occasion for men (4+ for women) is associated with risk for negative consequences. Yet, many have questioned the adequacy of this measure as an index of intoxication (e.g., a blood alcohol concentration [BAC] of 0.08 g%). In response to these concerns, a National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism task force recommended adding a time qualifier of 2 hours to this criterion. Although conceptually appealing, there has been little effort to determine whether this new measure better captures drinking that leads to negative consequences. Methods: This study examined the new binge standard (2-hour period) and old binge standard (no time qualifier) in relation to frequency of drinking to an estimated BAC of 0.08 g% and the experience of negative drinking consequences. These relations were examined within both a social drinking sample of adults (N = 200) and a sample of heavy-drinking young adults (N = 168) participating in a randomized clinical trial for drinking reduction. Results: Contrary to the purpose of adding a time qualifier, the new binge measure was not more strongly correlated with drinking to an estimated BAC of 0.08 g% relative to the old binge measure. In addition, when both measures were entered simultaneously into a regression model, only the old binge measure accounted for significant variance in negative drinking consequences. Conclusions: These empirically based results suggest that the original binge standard without a time qualifier may be preferable to the 2-hour standard as a marker for risk. The findings also suggest that further efforts are needed to identify a brief measure that effectively captures drinking to intoxication and related risk for negative consequences.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 2657-2663 |
Number of pages | 7 |
Journal | Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research |
Volume | 38 |
Issue number | 10 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Oct 1 2014 |
Keywords
- Binge Drinking
- Consequences
- Intoxication
- NIAAA
- Time Qualifier
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Medicine (miscellaneous)
- Toxicology
- Psychiatry and Mental health