| Summary: | Aim: To evaluate temporal changes in recorded alcohol consumption in Sri Lanka during and after the armed conflict 1998 – 2013.
Methods: District level alcohol sales, and mid-year population data for the whole study period (1998-2013) were consistently available from the Department of Excise and the Department of Census and Statistics for 18 of 25 districts. These data were used to estimate the recorded per capita consumption for the areas that were not directly exposed to the armed conflict. An interrupted time series design was employed to estimate the impact of the end of the armed conflict on recorded adult per capita alcohol consumption of population lived in the 18 districts.
Results: Adult per capita recorded alcohol consumption among Sri Lankans living in the 18 districts was 1.59 litres of pure alcohol in 1998. This increased up to 2.07 litres in 2009 and 2.55 litres in 2013. Prior to the end of the conflict in 2009 adult per capita recorded consumption increased by 0.051 litres of pure alcohol per year (95% CI 0.029-0.074, p<0.001); after 2009 this was 0.166 litres per year (95% CI 0.095-0.236, p<0.001). Beer consumption showed the highest per capita growth compared with other beverages.
Conclusions: Adult per capita recorded alcohol consumption among Sri Lankans living in areas that were not directly exposed to the conflict increased markedly after the end of the conflict. Rapid socio-economic development, alcohol industry penetration and lack of alcohol control strategies during the post-conflict period may have driven this increase.
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