Alcohol and Nicotine Dependence and Time to Death in a General Adult Population: A Mortality Cohort Study

Findings from general population studies are lacking in regard to the co-occurrence of alcohol and nicotine dependence in relation to later mortality. The aim of this study was to analyze potential interactions of risky alcohol drinking, tobacco smoking, alcohol and nicotine dependence, and time until the first cigarette is smoked in the morning after awakening in the prediction of mortality.

This study analyzed a random sample of the general population in Northern Germany, which comprised adults aged 18-64 years. Risky alcohol drinking, tobacco smoking, alcohol and nicotine dependence, and the time until the first cigarette in the morning after awakening were assessed for the period of 1996-1997 by applying the Munich-Composite International Diagnostic Interview. Data about all-cause mortality were gathered for the period of 2017-2018 and analyzed using Cox proportional hazards models.

Risky alcohol drinking, tobacco smoking, alcohol and nicotine dependence, and the time until the first cigarette in the morning were associated with each other and predicted the time to death. Among participants with a former alcohol dependence, 29.59% had a current nicotine dependence. Participants who had ever been dependent on alcohol at some point in their life before and currently smoked their first cigarette in the morning within 30 min or less after awakening had a hazard ratio of 5.28 (95% confidence interval: 3.33-8.38) for early death compared to low-risk alcohol consumers who had never smoked.

Risky alcohol drinking, tobacco smoking, alcohol and nicotine dependence, and the time until the first cigarette in the morning may have a cumulative impact on time to death. The findings suggest that it could be beneficial to provide support for quitting both risky alcohol drinking and tobacco smoking among nondependent individuals in addition to supporting remission from dependence.