ALCOHOL HABITS AMONG TEENAGERS IN SWEDEN - FACTORS OF IMPORTANCE

This study of 689 secondary school students (13-16 years of age) in Sw eden investigates the association between alcohol habits, the availabi lity of alcohol and age, gender, socioeconomic status, ethnic origin a nd family structure. Data were obtained by anonymous questionnaires in 1991. The availability of alcohol increased from the seventh grade to the ninth as did the proportion of alcohol consumers and students wit h regular alcohol consumption. Boys in the seventh and eighth grades s howed somewhat more advanced alcohol habits than girls, but in the nin th grade the opposite was seen. Students with more advanced alcohol ha bits and a higher availability of alcohol more often belonged to a low er socioeconomic strata and they lived more often with a single parent . Students of foreign background drank alcohol (especially wine) more regularly. An association was also found between the parents' liberal attitude toward offering alcohol at home and frequent intoxication and the students' experience of illicitly produced liquor, especially amo ng the youngest students. In spite of the Swedish alcohol policy the a vailability of alcohol is rather high among young people. Special atte ntion in alcohol preventive work should be paid to girls, young people living with one parent, young people in lower socioeconomic groups an d young people of foreign origin