Work-related stress factors associated with problem drinking: A study of the Spanish working population

Background Workers may drink to cope with stress or to overcome negative emotions arising from an aversive working context, but results of previous studies are inconclusive on the specific work features affecting alcohol use. Methods A cross-sectional study was designed with data on 13,005 working individuals from the Household Survey on Alcohol and Drugs in Spain (EDADES)-2007. We examined the associations between two drinking patterns and four measures of work-related stress factors. Results Moderate and high levels of exposure to a noxious working environment (OR=2.15 [95% CI=1.51-3.06] and OR=2.23 [95% CI=1.49-3.36]) and a high level of lack of social support (OR=1.62 [95% CI=1.16-2.28]) were associated with heavy drinking, and precariousness with binge drinking for both moderate (OR=1.22 [95% CI=1.01-1.46]) and high (OR=1.33 [95% CI=1.04-1.70]) levels (OR=1.21; 95% CI=1.04-1.40) in men. Significant associations among women were only found when stress factors were analyzed separately. Conclusions Preventive practices in the workplace targeting alcohol abuse should consider specific production processes and organizational features. Am. J. Ind. Med. 57:837-846, 2014. (c) 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.