Women ending marriage to a problem drinking partner decrease their own risk for problem drinking

Aims  Marital dissolution is associated with increased risk of problematic drinking. However, marriage to a problem drinker also increases this risk, and ending this type of relationship may actually decrease risk of problematic drinking. This study tested whether women ending their marriage to a problem drinker exhibited improvements in drinking. Design  National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions, a two‐wave nationally representative survey of the US adult population. Setting  In‐person interviews conducted in US households. Participants  Females married or living as if married at wave 1 at least 18 years of age. Measurements  Socio‐demographics, drinking frequency, drinking quantity, alcohol use disorders, problem drinking, partner problem drinking and relationship dissolution. Findings  Ending marriage to a non‐problem drinker predicted increased frequency of drinking [risk ratio (RR) = 1.55; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.43, 1.67], heavier drinking (RR = 1.30; 95% CI = 1.71, 1.45), more problematic drinking (RR = 2.45; 95% CI = 2.17, 2.77) and a greater likelihood of use disorder diagnosis [odds ratio (OR) = 2.2; 95% CI = 1.67, 2.91]. Ending a relationship with a problem drinker predicted less frequent drinking (RR = 0.94; 95% CI = 0.90, 0.98), less heavy drinking (RR = 0.84; 95% CI = 0.78, 0.90) and fewer alcohol‐related problems (RR = 0.77; 95% CI = 0.62, 0.95). Conclusions  Ending a marriage with a husband who drinks problematically may decrease risk of alcohol‐related problems among women, substantiating the need for alcohol treatments to address a problem drinking partner.