Limassol leads Cyprus alcohol consumption as drinking increases tenfold in the summer, study finds
Source: in-cyprus.com
Limassol records the highest daily alcohol consumption per resident in Cyprus, exceeding Ayia Napa by 140% and Nicosia by 60%, according to an epidemiological study using wastewater analysis published in Science of The Total Environment.
The year-long study across five urban centres found significant temporal and geographical variations in alcohol consumption patterns, with weekend consumption exceeding weekday levels by more than 40% nationwide.
Daily alcohol consumption per city measured 2.69ml per resident in Limassol, followed by Paphos at 2.36ml, Larnaca at 2.25ml, Nicosia at 1.67ml and Ayia Napa at 1.12ml per day per resident.
Coastal tourist areas showed significant seasonal variations, with 78.4% of annual alcohol consumption occurring during the May-September tourist season compared to 21.6% during winter months. Summer consumption in coastal regions averaged nearly 10 times higher than winter levels.
The highest single-day consumption reached 51.18ml per day per resident in coastal areas during peak tourism periods, whilst minimum levels of 0.26ml per day per resident were recorded in Nicosia during winter.
Nicosia maintained more stable consumption patterns throughout the year, ranging from 0.31 to 10.60ml per day per resident, compared to coastal areas which varied from 0.58 to 60.85ml per day per resident.
Weekend consumption peaks occurred in Nicosia during both winter and summer, whilst coastal tourist areas showed no weekday-weekend pattern during summer months due to continuous tourist activity.
International comparisons showed Cyprus recorded relatively low alcohol consumption levels. Nicosia’s average corresponds to 0.2 drinks per person daily, whilst coastal areas averaged 1.2 drinks per person daily.
Comparable tourism patterns were documented in Valencia, Spain, where festive periods showed consumption from 4.4 to 52.7ml per day per resident, similar to Cyprus coastal peaks.
International consumption levels varied significantly: Turkey’s Antalya recorded 25.9ml per day per resident, Greece’s Lesbos ranged 1.7-11.2ml, Italy showed 3.8-22.9ml across 17 cities, and Spain’s Valencia ranged 1.1-18.31ml during non-festive periods.
The study analysed five stimulant drugs alongside alcohol, finding statistically significant correlations between alcohol and methamphetamine, MDMA and ketamine, though researchers emphasised this indicated simultaneous presence rather than direct co-consumption.
MDMA showed significant correlation with alcohol across all locations, whilst ketamine showed higher levels in coastal areas, particularly during summer and autumn periods.
The wastewater-based epidemiology method enables estimation of actual population consumption levels independent of social stereotypes or under-reporting in questionnaires, researchers noted.
The study was conducted by Cypriot and European researchers led by the Environmental Chemistry Laboratory at the Cyprus University of Technology.
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