Statistical Estimation of the Awareness of the Working Age Population about Harmful Consumption of Alcohol as a Risk Factor of Cardiovascular Diseases

The article is devoted to the analysis of awareness of the working age population about alcohol abuse as a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases according to the results of a sociological study. The goal is to identify and characterize the awareness of residents of the Dnipropetrovsk region about the harmful alcohol consumption, personal attitudes and practices of drinking, the possibility of minimizing its harmful effects for the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases, as well as the activity to correct this risk factor. The method of personalized formal interviews is used. The survey of a representative sample of the population of working age (N2000) was carried out according to a specially developed methodology of qualitative and quantitative research stages and data collection tools. The study was conducted in 2017 on request of the Dnipropetrovsk Regional State Administration with the financial support of the World Bank. The gap between the almost complete awareness of the respondents (95.1%) and the harmful effects of alcohol abuse on existing cardiovascular disease or its possible future occurrence and actual practice of use was revealed. The majority of respondents reported that they drank alcohol (57.6%) now or had consumed it before (15%). It was shown that men prevailed in the group of those who consumed alcohol almost daily or several times a week (33.3% of those who consumed alcohol, versus 9.5% among women). The most common portion of alcohol among respondents (51.1%), consumed in one take, did not exceed three standard drinks.  The main reasons that prompted alcohol consumption were unwillingness to “fall out” from the team (more than 75% of respondents); national traditions (40%); way to relieve stress (25%). The expediency of studying changes in the situation regarding the prevalence of harmful use of alcohol, habitual practices of its use, activity to minimize harmful effects from the review of prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases in particular and adherence to a healthy lifestyle as a whole, after a certain time interval according to a similar methodology has been proved. The results of the survey can be used to assess the effectiveness of measures to improve the health literacy of the population, increase the motivation to change behavior in favor of health, building composite indicators.