A survey carried out by the Brazilian Liver Institute (Ibrafig) shows that 55% of the Brazilian population has the habit of consuming alcoholic beverages, with 17.2% of them reporting increased consumption during the Covid-19 pandemic, associated with anxiety conditions serious due to social isolation.
According to the survey, one in three people in the country consumes alcohol at least once a week. The abusive consumption of alcoholic beverages was reported by 18.8% of Brazilians interviewed in the survey. The data were collected based on the response of 1,900 people, spread across the five regions of the country.
The study also shows that, on average, Brazilians drink three doses of alcohol per occasion, which represents 450 ml of wine or three cans of beer. For the specialist in diseases and liver transplants, Liana Codes, the consumption of the Brazilian population is above what is recommended by health agencies.
“The result shows us that the population has a significant consumption of alcohol, frequently and in a significant amount on each occasion. The consumption considered adequate is no more than 14 grams – which is equivalent to a dose of 45 ml of distillate, 150 ml of wine or a can of beer, per day” said Liana Code to CNN.
“It is important that the population pay attention to the conscious consumption of alcohol, so that in the medium and long term we do not have a significant increase in these complications”, completed the specialist.
Data from the Health and Alcohol Information Center (CISA) also detail that alcohol abuse is growing in Brazil, particularly among women. According to the study, females are ‘more susceptible’ to developing cirrhosis and alcoholic hepatitis.
Also according to Cisa, cirrhosis of the liver surpassed the number of deaths from drunk driving and became the main cause of death attributed to alcohol in the country. While liver problems accounted for 18.5% of deaths attributable to alcohol use, traffic accidents accounted for 16.4% of these deaths.
“In the last year, there is a trend of increased consumption among females. Women are more susceptible to developing cirrhosis and alcoholic hepatitis, for physiological reasons. The use of more than one standard dose of alcohol per day can trigger liver disease”, highlighted the president of Ibrafig, Paulo Bittencourt.
Reference: CNN Brasil
