DRINKING PATTERNS AND FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH HEAVY EPISODIC DRINKING AMONG ADULTS IN MOLDOVA

Marina Crismaru

doi:10.36004/nier.es.2026.1-06

Authors

Marina Crismaru PhD in sociology, National Institute for Economic Research, Academy of Economic Studies of Moldova https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2802-5376

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.36004/nier.es.2026.1-06

Keywords:

alcohol consumption, drinking patterns, heavy episodic drinking, correlates

Abstract

Alcohol consumption is a prominent feature of everyday social life in the Republic of Moldova, yet empirical evidence on how alcohol is consumed and which population groups are most exposed to risky drinking remains limited. Using nationally representative data from the 2021 WHO STEPwise approach to Surveillance (STEPS) survey (N = 4,097 adults aged 18–69 years), this study examines patterns of alcohol consumption and the prevalence and determinants of heavy episodic drinking. Drinking patterns were described using survey-weighted estimates, and associations with heavy episodic drinking (six or more drinks on one occasion in the previous 30 days) were assessed using complex-sample logistic regression models. Alcohol consumption is common in the adult population, with 76% of past-year drinkers reporting alcohol use in the previous 30 days. Heavy episodic drinking was reported by 22% of current drinkers and was considerably more common among men than among women. Drinking patterns also differed across social and regional groups. In the adjusted analysis, heavy episodic drinking remained strongly associated with male sex, region of residence, smoking, and recent consumption of unrecorded alcohol. The findings suggest that alcohol-related risks in Moldova are shaped less by the prevalence of drinking itself than by the social and behavioural contexts in which alcohol is consumed.

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