Table 1.
Prevalence and means across earlier life heavy drinking pattern categories, before propensity-score matching
| Variable | Lifetime abstainers (n = 638) | Never heavya (n= 1,876) | Less heavyb(n = 626) | Young heavyc (n = 433) | Heavy 30sd (n = 510) | F |
| Demographics | ||||||
| Gender male, % | 26.8 | 33.5 | 59.6 | 66.1 | 76.1 | 147.12*** |
| Age, M | 59.1 | 58.5 | 53.6 | 51.5 | 54.9 | 56.65*** |
| Ethnicity | ||||||
| White and other, % | 52.5 | 70.0 | 82.3 | 79.7 | 70.0 | 40.98*** |
| Hispanic, % | 26.8 | 12.5 | 11.0 | 11.8 | 14.5 | 23.33*** |
| Black, % | 20.7 | 17.3 | 6.7 | 8.5 | 15.5 | 18.27*** |
| Married, % | 55.3 | 57.7 | 64.4 | 69.1 | 59.8 | 7.01*** |
| Employment | ||||||
| Employed, % | 41.2 | 55.3 | 69.6 | 70.2 | 53.5 | 36.4*** |
| Unemployed, % | 16.1 | 10.2 | 9.9 | 14.3 | 22.2 | 15.85*** |
| Retired, % | 30.7 | 29.4 | 18.1 | 13.6 | 22.4 | 19.88*** |
| Homemaker, % | 11.9 | 5.0 | 2.4 | 1.8 | 2.0 | 23.65*** |
| Religion | ||||||
| Protestant, % | 54.2 | 50.6 | 42.8 | 45.0 | 40.4 | 8.87*** |
| Catholic, % | 24.0 | 26.0 | 30.0 | 27.7 | 30.6 | 2.56* |
| Other religion, % | 16.1 | 14.6 | 12.3 | 14.1 | 13.3 | 1.08 |
| No religion, % | 5.6 | 8.8 | 14.9 | 13.2 | 15.7 | 13.17*** |
| Region | ||||||
| Northeast, % | 13.5 | 19.2 | 21.6 | 18.7 | 20.4 | 4.03** |
| Midwest, % | 16.6 | 25.9 | 28.1 | 27.5 | 26.7 | 7.56*** |
| South, % | 48.9 | 37.6 | 28.0 | 35.6 | 32.0 | 17.01*** |
| Mountain, % | 8.9 | 7.1 | 11.7 | 9.7 | 8.2 | 3.37** |
| Pacific, % | 12.1 | 10.1 | 10.7 | 8.5 | 12.7 | 1.56 |
| Born in United States, % | 73.8 | 88.0 | 90.4 | 92.6 | 88.0 | 29.69*** |
| Socioeconomic resources | ||||||
| Education | ||||||
| <High school graduate, % | 25.7 | 9.5 | 7.5 | 10.6 | 15.7 | 35.07*** |
| High school graduate, % | 35.0 | 27.8 | 27.5 | 27.9 | 30.6 | 3.45** |
| Some college, % | 20.1 | 23.8 | 24.1 | 29.1 | 28.8 | 4.39** |
| College graduate, % | 19.3 | 38.9 | 40.9 | 32.3 | 24.9 | 29.48*** |
| Family income, past year | ||||||
| Below poverty, % | 25.7 | 10.9 | 7.5 | 9.5 | 15.1 | 31.13*** |
| 1×-2× poverty, % | 20.7 | 16.6 | 13.1 | 13.9 | 17.4 | 3.99** |
| 2× poverty, % | 33.9 | 57.7 | 71.1 | 69.3 | 60.8 | 58.14*** |
| Missing, % | 19.7 | 14.8 | 8.3 | 7.4 | 6.7 | 18.86*** |
| Homelessness ever lifetime, % | 7.1 | 5.1 | 6.9 | 11.3 | 17.6 | 25.54*** |
| Health insurance | ||||||
| No coverage, % | 16.8 | 9.1 | 10.2 | 12.0 | 14.1 | 8.21*** |
| Public, % | 39.5 | 33.3 | 22.0 | 18.5 | 34.3 | 21.44*** |
| Private, % | 39.2 | 53.5 | 64.7 | 66.1 | 48.2 | 30.13*** |
| Health-related risk factors | ||||||
| Years of smoking, M | 8.1 | 13.8 | 18.8 | 19.2 | 26.7 | 96.64*** |
| No. of cigarettes when smoking, M | 3.2 | 6.6 | 10.5 | 12.3 | 16.7 | 114.04*** |
| Marijuana use ever, lifetime, % | 6.4 | 20.4 | 44.6 | 52.4 | 48.0 | 144.61*** |
| BMI,M | 28.1 | 27.2 | 27.6 | 28.3 | 28.2 | 7.65*** |
| CES-D scale, M | 3.94 | 3.42 | 3.42 | 3.73 | 4.89 | 15.45*** |
| Current depression, % | 17.7 | 15.6 | 15.3 | 16.2 | 23.1 | 4.54** |
| Chronic depression, % | 20.2 | 16.4 | 16.6 | 21.5 | 30.2 | 13.42*** |
| Distress, M | 1.07 | 1.22 | 1.23 | 1.36 | 1.31 | 7.57*** |
| Sense of coherence, M | 4.18 | 4.27 | 4.25 | 4.20 | 4.10 | 7.38*** |
| Childhood physical abuse, % | 13.3 | 17.5 | 28.4 | 33.0 | 35.1 | 37.55*** |
| Childhood sexual abuse, % | 5.3 | 7.4 | 8.3 | 11.1 | 12.7 | 6.80*** |
| Alcoholism in parent, % | 16.1 | 19.3 | 22.0 | 24.7 | 35.5 | 19.61*** |
| Alcoholism in grandparent, % | 4.4 | 7.3 | 12.1 | 13.2 | 14.3 | 14.41*** |
Notes: BMI = body mass index; CES-D = Center for Epidemiology Studies-Depression scale.
a
Never heavy = never 5+ monthly or more during teens/20s/30s;
b
less heavy = 5+ monthly but not weekly during teens/20s/30s;
c
young heavy = 5+ weekly or more during teens/20s, but not 30s;
d
heavy 30s = 5+ weekly or more during 30s.
*
p < .05;
**
p < .01;
***
p < .001.