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Information on life-long history of alcohol consumption might be more relevant to chronic diseases than current intake. The aim of this study was to describe past alcohol intake and consumption patterns in the EPIC-Germany cohorts, by sex and age, from 1949 to 1998. Past daily consumption of alcoholic beverages – beer, wine, and spirits – was assessed through a lifestyle questionnaire administered to 27,099 subjects of the EPIC-Potsdam and 25,449 subjects of the EPIC-Heidelberg cohort. Recruitment of the cohorts concentrated on men aged 40–64 and on women aged 35–64. For each alcoholic beverage, the consumption at ages 20, 30, and 40 was asked. The data were used to calculate previous mean consumption in 10-year intervals from 1949 to 1998. Alcohol intake was observed to be higher in the Heidelberg than in the Potsdam cohort. Differences between cohorts were most marked for wine consumption which was considerably higher in the Heidelberg cohort. Men consumed approximately 3 times the amount of alcohol of women. Men preferred to drink beer, women preferred to drink wine. For the Potsdam cohort, alcohol intake was observed to increase since 1949. For the Heidelberg cohort, a recent decrease in alcohol intake in males and females of 30 and 40 years of age was noted. The data indicate that collection of alcohol consumption data at various discrete points in time is essential to depict life-long history of alcohol consumption.Copyright © 1999 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]