THE USE OF MEDICATION AND ALCOHOL AMONG THE SPANISH POPULATION

The 1993 Spanish National Health Survey data were used to estimate how frequently both medication and alcohol were used among 21084 people o ver 16 years of age. A total of 47.1% of the population, especially wo men and an increasingly older section, had taken some kind of medicati on during the previous fortnight. A total of 9.8% of the population to ok medication and alcohol together. This was more frequently observed among men than among women, and especially so among the older age grou ps. These data reveal that concomitant alcohol and medication use is f requent among the Spanish population, and suggest a need to devote muc h more attention to this potential problem.