Abstinence of alcohol in Brazil.

Aim: This study describes the prevalence and socio-demographic characteristics of Brazilian self-reported never-drinkers aged 18 or over. Besides the investigation of prevalence, the hypothesis was that socio-demographic characteristics would be different when compared to drinkers of any severity. Subject and methods: Data on 2,190 adults (18+) were obtained from the First Brazilian National Alcohol Survey. Seven socio-demographic variables were included and logistic regression was used to assess their effects. Results: The rate of self-reported never drinking in Brazil was 30.6 % amongst men and 56.1 % amongst women. The analysis indicated a growing trend in abstinence as age rises, with 80.1 % of the interviewees in the 80-plus age group reporting they had never drunk. When looking at religious affiliations, Pentecostal evangelicals and other evangelicals and Protestants were 7.3, 4.4 and 6.3 times more likely never to have drunk than the interviewees from different religions or with no religious affiliation. Conclusion: Vicariate associations between lifetime abstinence and sociodemographics were found for gender, age group and religious affiliation. The analysis indicated a growing trend in abstinence as age rises. Pentecostal evangelicals, other evangelicals and Protestants were 7.3, 4.4 and 6.3 times more likely never to have drunk than the interviewees from different religions or with no religious affiliation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]