The influence of family history on alcohol intake in males and females

Objective. To assess the risk for alcohol abuse among individuals with a po sitive family history of alcohol abuse (FH+). Material and methods. The stu dy population was a sample (n=8 890) drawn from a 1988 national survey on a ddictions in Mexico City's urban population. Data analysis consisted of fre quency and association measures, using family history of alcohol abuse as t he exposure factor. Results. Prevalence of heavy drinking was 13.7% for mal es and 0.6% for females, Alcohol dependence syndrome was found in 9.9% of m ales and 0.6% of females. Men with HF+ were twice more likely to develop de pendence syndrome than HF- males. The odds ratio for women was 1.27. Conclu sions. Differential patterns by gender were found for familial transmission of alcohol abuse; parental alcohol intake is a main risk factor for develo ping alcohol dependence syndrome. The English version of this paper is avai lable at: http://www.insp.mx/salud/index.html.