Table of Contents

Component Description

The Alcohol Use Questionnaire (variable name prefix ALQ) focuses on lifetime and current use (past 12 months). Questions are not specific to type of alcohol used.

Eligible Sample

Participants aged 12 years and older were eligible; however, only data from participants aged 18 and over are included in this file. Mentally impaired individuals or participants who were unable to understand English or Spanish were excluded from the ALQ.

Interview Setting and Mode of Administration

The ALQ is administered at the Mobile Examination Center (MEC) during the MEC Interview. For adults 18 years and older, questions were asked by trained interviewers using the Computer-Assisted Personal Interview (CAPI) system. For youths 12-17 years, questions were self-administered using the Audio Computer-Assisted Self-Interview (ACASI) system. The ACASI was conducted in both English and Spanish.

Quality Assurance & Quality Control

The CAPI system is programmed with built-in consistency checks to reduce data entry errors. CAPI also uses online help screens to assist interviewers in defining key terms used in the questionnaire.
The ACASI enables respondents to hear questions through headphones as well as read questions on the computer screen. Respondents moved at their own speed and touched the screen to indicate their responses. No proxy respondents or translators were used during the ACASI.

For details on the QA/QC process for this component, please refer to the MEC Interviewer Procedures manual on the NHANES website.

Data Processing and Editing

The data were edited for completeness, consistency, and illogical values.

Analytic Notes

Please refer to the NHANES Analytic Guidelines and the on-line NHANES Tutorial for further details on the use of sample weights and other analytic issues.

Information on alcohol use is collected from all participants aged 12 years and older. Only data from participants aged 18 and older are included in this data file. A special use data file for participants aged 12-17, ALQ_H_R, is available through the NCHS Research Data Center (RDC).

Codebook and Frequencies

SEQN - Respondent sequence number

Variable Name:
SEQN
SAS Label:
Respondent sequence number
English Text:
Respondent sequence number.
Target:
Both males and females 18 YEARS - 150 YEARS

ALQ101 - Had at least 12 alcohol drinks/1 yr?

Variable Name:
ALQ101
SAS Label:
Had at least 12 alcohol drinks/1 yr?
English Text:
The next questions are about drinking alcoholic beverages. Included are liquor (such as whiskey or gin), beer, wine, wine coolers, and any other type of alcoholic beverage.In any one year, {have you/has SP} had at least 12 drinks of any type of alcoholic beverage? By a drink, I mean a 12 oz. beer, a 5 oz. glass of wine, or one and half ounces of liquor.
Target:
Both males and females 18 YEARS - 150 YEARS
Code or Value Value Description Count Cumulative Skip to Item
1 Yes 3790 3790 ALQ120Q
2 No 1623 5413
7 Refused 0 5413
9 Don't know 8 5421
. Missing 503 5924

ALQ110 - Had at least 12 alcohol drinks/lifetime?

Variable Name:
ALQ110
SAS Label:
Had at least 12 alcohol drinks/lifetime?
English Text:
In {your/SP's} entire life, {have you/has he/ has she} had at least 12 drinks of any type of alcoholic beverage?
Target:
Both males and females 18 YEARS - 150 YEARS
Code or Value Value Description Count Cumulative Skip to Item
1 Yes 689 689
2 No 938 1627 End of Section
7 Refused 0 1627 End of Section
9 Don't know 4 1631 End of Section
. Missing 4293 5924

ALQ120Q - How often drink alcohol over past 12 mos

Variable Name:
ALQ120Q
SAS Label:
How often drink alcohol over past 12 mos
English Text:
In the past 12 months, how often did {you/SP} drink any type of alcoholic beverage? PROBE: How many days per week, per month, or per year did {you/SP} drink?
English Instructions:
ENTER '0' FOR NEVER. ENTER QUANTITY.
Target:
Both males and females 18 YEARS - 150 YEARS
Hard Edits:
0 to 366
Code or Value Value Description Count Cumulative Skip to Item
0 to 365 Range of Values 4475 4475
777 Refused 0 4475
999 Don't know 4 4479
. Missing 1445 5924

ALQ120U - # days drink alcohol per wk, mo, yr

Variable Name:
ALQ120U
SAS Label:
# days drink alcohol per wk, mo, yr
English Text:
UNIT OF MEASURE.
English Instructions:
ENTER UNIT.
Target:
Both males and females 18 YEARS - 150 YEARS
Code or Value Value Description Count Cumulative Skip to Item
1 Week 1461 1461
2 Month 953 2414
3 Year 1179 3593
7 Refused 0 3593
9 Don't know 0 3593
. Missing 2331 5924

ALQ130 - Avg # alcoholic drinks/day - past 12 mos

Variable Name:
ALQ130
SAS Label:
Avg # alcoholic drinks/day - past 12 mos
English Text:
In the past 12 months, on those days that {you/SP} drank alcoholic beverages, on the average, how many drinks did {you/he/she} have?
English Instructions:
IF LESS THAN 1 DRINK, ENTER '1'. IF 95 DRINKS OR MORE, ENTER '95'. ENTER # OF DRINKS.
Target:
Both males and females 18 YEARS - 150 YEARS
Code or Value Value Description Count Cumulative Skip to Item
1 to 25 Range of Values 3593 3593
777 Refused 0 3593
999 Don't know 3 3596
. Missing 2328 5924

ALQ141Q - # days have 4/5 drinks - past 12 mos

Variable Name:
ALQ141Q
SAS Label:
# days have 4/5 drinks - past 12 mos
English Text:
In the past 12 months, on how many days did {you/SP} have {DISPLAY NUMBER} or more drinks of any alcoholic beverage? PROBE: How many days per week, per month, or per year did {you/SP} have {DISPLAY NUMBER} or more drinks in a single day?
English Instructions:
ENTER '0' FOR NONE. CAPI INSTRUCTION: IF SP = MALE, DISPLAY = 5 IF SP = FEMALE, DISPLAY = 4 HARD EDIT: If ALQ101 = 2 or 9, ALQ141 must be less than 3 times per year. Error Message: "Number of drinks must be less than 3 if SP never had more than 12 drinks per year." ENTER QUANTITY
Target:
Both males and females 18 YEARS - 150 YEARS
Code or Value Value Description Count Cumulative Skip to Item
0 to 350 Range of Values 3588 3588
777 Refused 0 3588
999 Don't know 7 3595
. Missing 2329 5924

ALQ141U - # days per week, month, year?

Variable Name:
ALQ141U
SAS Label:
# days per week, month, year?
English Text:
UNIT OF MEASURE.
English Instructions:
ENTER UNIT.
Target:
Both males and females 18 YEARS - 150 YEARS
Code or Value Value Description Count Cumulative Skip to Item
1 Week 361 361
2 Month 264 625
3 Year 839 1464
7 Refused 0 1464
9 Don't know 0 1464
. Missing 4460 5924

ALQ151 - Ever have 4/5 or more drinks every day?

Variable Name:
ALQ151
SAS Label:
Ever have 4/5 or more drinks every day?
English Text:
Was there ever a time or times in {your/SP's} life when {you/he/she} drank {DISPLAY NUMBER} or more drinks of any kind of alcoholic beverage almost every day?
English Instructions:
CAPI INSTRUCTION: IF SP = MALE, DISPLAY = 5 IF SP = FEMALE, DISPLAY = 4
Target:
Both males and females 18 YEARS - 150 YEARS
Code or Value Value Description Count Cumulative Skip to Item
1 Yes 736 736
2 No 3740 4476
7 Refused 0 4476
9 Don't know 1 4477
. Missing 1447 5924

ALQ154 - CHECK ITEM

Variable Name:
ALQ154
English Instructions:
CHECK ITEM ALQ154: IF ALQ141 IS CODED '0' OR IF ALQ120Q IS CODED '0', GO TO END OF SECTION. OTHERWISE, CONTINUE WITH ALQ160.
Target:
Both males and females 18 YEARS - 150 YEARS

ALQ160 - # days have 4/5 or more drinks in 2 hrs

Variable Name:
ALQ160
SAS Label:
# days have 4/5 or more drinks in 2 hrs
English Text:
During the past 30 days, how many times did {you/SP} drink {DISPLAY NUMBER} or more drinks of any kind of alcohol in about two hours?
English Instructions:
ENTER '0' FOR NEVER. CAPI INSTRUCTION: IF SP = MALE, DISPLAY = 5 IF SP = FEMALE, DISPLAY = 4 SOFT EDIT: IF RESPONSE IS > 60 TIMES, THEN DISPLAY "YOU SAID THAT IN THE PAST 30 DAYS, YOU HAD {DISPLAY NUMBER} OR MORE DRINKS OF ANY KIND OF ALCOHOL IN ABOUT TWO HOURS, (DISPLAY QUANTITY) TIMES. IS THAT CORRECT"? ENTER QUANTITY.
Target:
Both males and females 18 YEARS - 150 YEARS
Code or Value Value Description Count Cumulative Skip to Item
0 to 30 Range of Values 1865 1865
777 Refused 0 1865
999 Don't know 1 1866
. Missing 4058 5924