Trajectories of alcohol consumption in a sample of 30-year-old residents over 20 years from 2004 to 2024

Abstract Aim To examine the long-term development of hazardous alcohol consumption in a population-based sample from East Germany between 2004 and 2024, focusing on gender and educational differences. Subject and methods The data comes from the Saxony Longitudinal Study. The study began in 1987, and participants were surveyed annually in writing on various topics. The current evaluation included 194 participants (103 women, 91 men) who completed the AUDIT-C questionnaire at eight different time points. Hazardous drinking was defined using gender-specific cutoffs (≥ 5 for men, ≥ 4 for women). Descriptive statistics, paired t -tests, and effect sizes (Cohen’s d ) were used to analyse trends and group differences. Results Overall, AUDIT-C scores declined over the 20-year period. Men had consistently higher scores than women but showed a steadier decrease. Participants with lower educational attainment had significantly higher scores than those with higher education. Despite some fluctuations, a general downward trend was evident across all groups. Conclusion Hazardous alcohol consumption decreased with age and was influenced by gender and educational level. While the generalisability is limited due to the specific sample, the findings offer valuable insights into long-term alcohol use patterns in middle-aged adults in Germany.