On July 26, CISA launched the fifth edition of the report Alcohol and the Health of Brazillians - 2023 Panorama (Álcool e a Saúde dos Brasileiros – Panorama 2023). In an unprecedented way, the new edition presents the dossier “Household survey on the pattern of alcohol consumption and its sociodemographic characteristics in Brazil” (“Pesquisa Domiciliar sobre o padrão de consumo de álcool e suas características sociodemográficas no Brasil), a survey carried out by the research institute Ipec (Intelligence in Research and Strategic Consulting - Inteligência em Pesquisa e Consultoria Estratégica) at the request of CISA, which presents the profile of alcohol consumers in Brazil and their perception of what moderate drinking is.

The survey showed that 55% of Brazilians interviewed are abstainers and, among those who drink, 27% drink moderately and 17% consume abusively.

The data also show that 75% of abusive consumers believe that they drink moderately, with only 13% recognizing that they need to change their habits and 11% admitting that they drink a lot, but do not consider it to be a problem. In addition, 57% of Brazilians are unaware of or consider moderation above the parameters defined for moderation. Another important fact is that there is a significant difference between the reality of the profile of those who consume alcohol and the perception of their own consumption, especially among moderate consumers and those who exaggerate.

What is the profile of the Brazilian consumer?

According to the research carried out by Ipec, Brazilians that consume alcohol moderately or abusively have higher education and higher income compared to non-drinkers, and those who have completed higher education are more prevalent among moderates (31%). Regarding the frequency of consumption of alcoholic beverages, in general, consumption occurs at least once a month (39%). However, with regard to consumption per occasion, 63% of respondents consume up to 4 drinks per occasion (limit for abusive consumption) and do it in a frequency between once a month and less than once a week.

The survey also showed that 39% of respondents said they drink alcohol once a week or every 15 days, consuming between 1 and 2 drinks per occasion. And among women, this rate rises to 43%. In addition, respondents who practice a religion, whether Catholic or Evangelical, are more abstemious (73% of Evangelicals and 49% of Catholics) and practice less alcohol abuse (11% of Evangelicals and 19% of Catholics) compared to those of other religions or no religion (45% are abstainers and 21% are heavy drinkers).

With regard to age group, young people aged 18 to 24 years have a lower percentage of abstainers (13%), while adults aged 25 to 34 years are those who consume more alcohol, both moderately (26%) and abusively (27%) . People aged 60 or over who reported drinking practice abusive alcohol consumption more often than other age groups: 17% of them claim to consume six or more drinks two to four times a week and 9% do it five times per week or more.