Use of alcohol and surrogates by residents of a typical Belarus city

Abstract

Presented in this paper are the results of a survey conducted in 2012 in Grodno city (Belarus), the purpose of which was to study the prevalence and pattern of alcohol and surrogates consumption among the urban population. Using a structured interview, including questions regarding the prevalence of the use of alcohol and surrogates, as well as the motives of its use, 655 residents (329 men and 326 women) were surveyed in Grodno. According to the results of the survey the most popular unlicensed alcoholic beverages arc homemade wine and samogon, which is consumed periodically by 31.7% of men and 9.9% of women. The conviction that the quality of samogon exceeds that of licensed vodka is the main motive for the use of samogon. In addition, 5.0% of men and 1.9% of women periodically consume alcohol surrogates, the most popular of these being industrial alcohol and alcohol-containing medicinal preparations. The data presented suggests the existence of an underground market of noncommercial alcohol in Belarus. The results from this study emphasize the urgency of implementing comprehensive alcohol policy, which need to address overall consumption, harmful drinking pattern and taking into account the consumption of alcohol from illicit sources.