The measurement of drinking patterns and alcohol problems in Nigeria

As in most other societies, alcoholic beverages have been consumed in what is present-day Nigeria for a long time. Before the arrival of western facto ry-made drinks, alcohol consumption was limited to a variety of beverages p roduced from palm trees and food grains. Today, beer has become the most po pular drink in the country but traditional beverages (palm wine, burukutu, ogogoro, pito) are still widely consumed in both rural and urban areas. Tho ugh research has shown that heavy drinking seems to be the norm among those who drink any type of alcohol, there is no clear association between drink ing and social or health problems. On the other hand, certain types of beve rages are linked with positive attributes. Despite their potential signific ance, these and other issues have not received the attention they deserve i n the alcohol research literature on Nigeria and other African countries. T he focus of this paper is on the need to take into consideration relevant m easurement issues (e.g., container and serving size, alcohol contents, drin king expectancies, perceived risks associated with the consumption of diffe rent types of alcoholic beverages, as well as reasons for drinking) in alco hol research. It is suggested that a better understanding of these and rela ted factors is necessary for the advancement of alcohol epidemiology in the country. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.