Smoking and Drinking Behaviors among Older Adults: A Comparative Analysis of Three Southeast Asian Countries

Studies on the two major health-risk behaviors of smoking tobacco and drinking alcohol among older populations, particularly in Southeast Asia, are limited. This paper provides comparative analyses of the prevalences and correlates of smoking tobacco and drinking alcohol among older people in Myanmar, Vietnam, and Thailand, using data from the latest available national aging surveys in the three countries. The analyses were conducted within a multivariate framework. Gender-specific results show that smoking tobacco and drinking alcohol are more common among older men than women in all three countries. However, the prevalence of smoking and drinking among men declines at older ages. The multivariate analyses reveal that a higher level of education has a significant negative association with smoking and drinking in all three settings, but the magnitude and the direction of associations vary considerably between countries and genders. Area of residence is correlated with smoking among men in all three countries, whereas co-residential arrangements with spouse, children, or both significantly reduce alcohol consumption among men in Myanmar and among men and women in Thailand. In all three settings a significant complementary relationship between smoking and drinking is observed. From a policy perspective this implies that a successful reduction in smoking could be achieved through anti-drinking campaigns and vice versa.