Alcohol use, abuse, and alcohol-related disorders among ethnic groups in Hungary. Part II: Palócs from Mátraderecske.

An epidemiological study on alcohol drinking habits, alcohol metabolism rate, alcohol-related acute physiological symptoms, and alcohol misuse among Palócs, an ethnic minority in Hungary, was conducted. The demographic and sociocultural correlates revealed their ethnic identity: low to moderate education, relatively low number of children per family and higher percentage of skilled workers among males. Alcohol use survey revealed that frequency of alcohol consumption among Palóc male population is considerably high. While about 41% of the Palóc males reported to drink daily between 30 ml and 90 ml pure alcohol, only 5% of the females reported to consume this amount regularly. 53% of males and less than 1% of females were classified as heavy drinkers (consuming more than 60 ml absolute alcohol per day). While all kinds of alcoholic beverage was reported to be consumed by the males, Pálinka (a kind of brandy) drinking was more common among females. About 45% of the Palócs reported to experience acute reactions after drinking a moderate dose of alcohol. The physical and physiological reactions include facial flushing, higher pulse rate, tachycardia and euphoria. While there was no distinct gender difference in facial flushing response to alcohol drinking, a higher percentage of males (70%) reported symptoms such as sleepiness, euphoria and aggressiveness as compared to about only 36% females reporting such reactions. Distribution of clinical chemical markers, in particular GGT values confirmed a heavier alcohol consumption among males than among females. High GGT value also correlated with a positive alcohol-related facial flushing reaction in males.