Binge drinking in Brazil through the Covid-19 pandemic: why gender still matters?

Objective: The COVID-19 pandemic impacted public health worldwide. Binge drinking is a high-risk pattern, linked to health problems and injuries. We aimed to assess the prevalence of binge drinking during four time points in the first year of the pandemic and correlate these with sociodemographic variables, providing insights into binge drinking trends.

Methods: This cross-sectional study analyzed data from a national survey conducted between April 2020 and January 2021, with 11,205 adult participants. Sociodemographic variables included sex, age, sexual orientation, race/ethnicity, education level, and healthcare worker status. Regression models were used to assess associations with past-month binge drinking, which was the dependent variable.

Results: Binge drinking rates were stable across the four time-points. Male sex was consistently associated with binge drinking at all time-points. Other variables such as younger age, lower educational background and non-straight sexual orientation were associated with binge drinking in specific time-points, but not in all of them.

Conclusions: The persistence of gender disparities in binge drinking during a period of high unprecedented stress suggests the need for targeted interventions in future public health emergencies. Further research is required to explore the long-term impact of the pandemic on alcohol consumption behaviors and related health outcomes.