Alcohol and tobacco sales increased during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic

COVID-19 has caused enormous medical, emotional, and financial sacrifices to Americans. Currently, new Keck medicine in USC research shows that pandemics can have adverse indirect consequences.

In the early months of COVID-19, national alcohol and tobacco sales increased, according to a survey published in. Annual report of internal medicine today. Researchers found that between April and June 2020, sales of these substances increased by 34% and 13%, respectively, compared to the same month in 2019.

“These are significant jumps, indicating that the stress, boredom and loneliness caused by the pandemic may have led to an increase in alcohol. Tobacco use“. Brian P. Lee, MD, MD, a liver specialist and liver transplant specialist at the Keck Medicine and USC Institute for Intoxication Sciences and lead author of the study.

With cigarettes Alcohol abuse Is the second and ninth largest cause of death in the world, killing about 8 million people worldwide each year.

Lee and his colleagues bought alcohol and tobacco after noticing in 2020 that hospitalization for alcohol-related liver disease (cirrhosis or alcoholic hepatitis) at USC Keck Hospital increased by about 30% compared to the previous year. I decided to study the pattern. Some patients also admitted to using alcohol to treat pandemic-related stressors.

Doctors suspected that the tendency to witness locally was also occurring nationwide. And if one substance was abused, they wondered if another substance, tobacco, would be abused as well.

In search of national data, they turned to the Nielsen National Consumer Panel. The Nielsen National Consumer Panel is designed to track the consumption habits of approximately 70,000 households in the United States over time and represent them nationwide. People are given a handheld scanner or use the smartphone app to scan products in stores and report purchases.

Researchers compared alcohol and tobacco sales from April to June 2020 to the same period in 2019. They set up controls to offset the factors that should be taken into account that could independently cause the rise, such as restaurants and bars closing in these months. Liquor sales..

From 2019 to 2020, when they calculated the results, Tobacco sales Households increased in all demographics, and alcohol sales increased in almost all demographics. The increase in sales of both substances was the highest, but young adults, ethnic minorities, Young children And / or large families and Higher income..

“We assumed that these subgroups were buying more alcohol, such as subgroups with young children. tobacco “Because they were more stressed than the rest of the population,” said Lee, an assistant professor of clinical medicine at Keck School of Medicine at the USC. “For high-income earners, increased disposable income.” Stated.

The data also revealed that hard liqueur sales were higher than wine and beer, and as a result, Lee found it awkward. “Sake is the best alcohol There is content and it may indicate that there is a problem with drinking. “

Lee believes that the study may reveal previously unrecognized public health issues related to COVID-19. “This study draws attention to the fact that many people across the country may be self-medicated as a way to deal with it,” he said. “By spotlighting this issue, individuals can identify this behavior as potentially harmful and replace drinking and smoking with healthier activities. Mental in addition to policy makers. Health professionals and healthcare organizations can also develop interventions to help them. “

The other Keck School of Medicine physicians involved in this study is Dr. Nora Terrault, MD, a Gastroenterologist at Keck School of Medicine and responsible for gastroenterology and liver disease at Keck School. Jennifer Dodge, MPH, Associate Professor of Research Medicine and Preventive Medicine at Keck School of Medicine.And Dr. Adam Levental, Professor of Prevention medicine At Keck School.

Researchers want to do more research to see if this three-month trend persists throughout the pandemic.