A combination of reported consumption and the CAGE alcohol screening questionnaire [46] was used to define alcohol use. The respondents were asked whether they were abstaining from alcohol, and, if not, asked to numerically state how many days they usually drank alcohol during one month, and how many units of beer, wine and liquor they usually drank over a two-week period. The frequency and amount were summed. The CAGE questionnaire consists of four yes/no statements related to alcohol use. Two items regarding criticism and guilt were collapsed. Both had to be endorsed to score one point. These items may reflect attitudes to drinking rather than problem drinking itself. In our data, these two items also turned out to be considerably less associated with consumption than the other CAGE items ("cut down" and "eye-opener"), each scored as one point. Abstainers were scored "no" or 0 on missing items.
