Kanteres Fotis, Lachenmeier Dirk W, Rehm Jürgen
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Addiction. 2009 May;104(5):752-9. doi: 10.1111/j.1360-0443.2009.02507.x. Epub 2009 Feb 10.
To describe the consumption, distribution, production and chemical composition of alcohol, including cuxa (pronounced 'coo sha'), in Nahualá, a highland Mayan municipality in Guatemala. Cuxa is a sugarcane-derived spirit, in part produced clandestinely, that has been distributed in the community for several decades.
Key informant interviews with alcohol distributors and consumers, cuxa producers and health professionals, as well as analyses of questionnaires from a sample of 47 spouses who came to the local health centre for problems related to their husband's drinking. Sampling and chemical analysis of cuxa from 12 of 13 identified sales points in the head-town of Nahualá and its nearby settlements (10 km radius). Fieldwork was conducted between November 2007 and March 2008.
Alcohol consumption was found to be integrated culturally in this community. The overall drinking culture was marked by irregular heavy drinking occasions, especially around market days, with substantial inebriation and health problems, especially among street inhabiting drinkers. Cuxa contributed to these problems, and cuxa drinking was socially stigmatized. Cuxa was produced both clandestinely and industrially, and sold legally by taverns and illegally by clandestine distributors. The alcoholic strength of the samples was typically between 17 and 19% vol.; clandestinely produced cuxa samples showed acetaldehyde contamination.
Measures should be taken to reduce the harm associated with alcohol in this community, including efforts to reduce acetaldehyde levels in cuxa.
描述危地马拉高地玛雅自治区纳瓦拉的酒精消费、分布、生产及化学成分，包括库沙酒（发音为“库-沙”）。库沙酒是一种源自甘蔗的烈酒，部分为非法生产，已在该社区流通数十年。
对酒精经销商、消费者、库沙酒生产者及卫生专业人员进行关键信息访谈，并分析47对配偶的调查问卷，这些配偶因丈夫饮酒问题前往当地卫生中心。对纳瓦拉首府及其附近定居点（半径10公里）13个已确认销售点中的12个销售点的库沙酒进行采样和化学分析。实地调查于2007年11月至2008年3月进行。
发现该社区的酒精消费与文化融合。总体饮酒文化的特点是饮酒场合不规律且量大，尤其是在集市日前后，会导致严重醉酒及健康问题，特别是街头饮酒者。库沙酒加剧了这些问题，饮用库沙酒在社会上受到污名化。库沙酒既有非法生产的，也有工业生产的，酒馆合法销售，非法经销商则非法售卖。样本的酒精含量通常在17%至19%（体积比）之间；非法生产的库沙酒样本显示有乙醛污染。
应采取措施减少该社区与酒精相关的危害，包括努力降低库沙酒中的乙醛含量。
