Netherlands National Drug Monitor - Research and Documentation ...

Alcohol misuse and dependence
• According to data from the 2007-2009 NEMESIS-2 study, between 0.3% and 1.2%
of the Dutch population aged between 18 and 64 fulfilled the diagnostic criteria for
alcohol dependence on an annual basis; An estimated 2.9% to 4.5% of respondents
met the criteria for alcohol misuse.
• Alcohol disorders are more common among men than women (table 7.5).
• In terms of population numbers, an estimated 82,400 people in the 18-64 age bracket
are dependent on alcohol. Almost five times as many misuse alcohol (395 600).
• This population study did not take account of juveniles under the age of 18 or older
people aged over 65; nor did it include those who were insufficiently fluent in Dutch
to participate, homeless people or those in institutional care for a prolonged period.
It is not known to what extent this may have influenced the outcome.
• The number of people with an alcohol disorder, particular alcohol dependence, is
lower in the 2007-2009 survey than in NEMESIS I from 1996 (annual prevalence of
dependence: 0.7%). This may have been caused by differences in the criteria for a
diagnosis of dependence. The criteria in the 4 th edition of the DSM are more stringent
than those of the 3 rd edition, which means that fewer people meet the criteria
for dependence. Furthermore, the instrument used to measure disorders has been
changed, which has also resulted in a lower estimate of the prevalence of alcohol
dependence in NEMESIS-2, compared to the earlier study.
• Other international research has likewise shown that the 4 th edition of the DSM
produces lower estimates than the 3 rd edition (De Graaf et al., 2010).
Table 7.5 Annual prevalence and number of people with an alcohol disorder, by gender. In brackets:
95% Confidence Intervals. Survey year 2007-2009
Disorder Men (%) Women (%) Total (%) Total number
Alcohol misuse 5.6
(4.2 – 6.9)
1.8
(1.1 – 2.6)
3.7
(2.9 – 4.5)
395 600
Alcohol dependence 1.0
(0.3 – 1.7)
0.5
(0.0 – 0.9)
0.7
(0.3 – 1.2)
82 400
Source: Nemesis-2 2007-2009 (De Graaf et al., 2010).
7.5 Usage: international comparison
General Population
• On behalf of the European Commission, in 2006, the Eurobarometer surveyed (attitudes
to) alcohol use in the EU member states.
• In 2006, in the general population aged 15 and older in the various member states
of the EU-15, the percentage of those who had consumed alcohol in the past month
varied from 56% to 84 percent. In the EU-15 as a whole, current alcohol use was 67%.
7 Alcohol
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