Cooking with alcohol: a matched case-control study in Italy and Germany assessing the risk of alcoholism due to an early exposure to alcohol in childhood

The study aims at understanding the role of early exposure to ethanol during childhood, in particular in the form ofalcohol used in food preparation. A matched case control study was conducted in Italy and Germany. 300 caseswere selected from the lists of the Alcoholics Anonymous Associations and 300 controls were matched from thegeneral population. A CATI system was used for collecting information on drinking habits, family risk factors, ageat first ethanol consumption, binge drinking episodes and alcohol ingestion as a food ingredient during childhood.Association of variables with the status of case were analysed using a multivariable conditional logisticregression. In the multivariable model four variables were selected: education, father drinking status, age at firstethanol consumption and binge drinking during adolescence. Consumption of food containing alcohol in commonrecipes was not associated with an increased risk of alcoholism in older ages. Drinkers having their first contactdirectly with alcoholic beverage before age 13 were more likely to suffer from alcohol dependence at some timeduring their life. On the contrary, using alcohol in food preparation during childhood does not appear to be relatedwith subsequent risk for alcohol abuse.