Calidad del alcohol producido en Europa ilegalmente o de forma no regulada: resultados del proyecto AMPHORA Quality of illegally and informally produced alcohol in Europe: Results from the AMPHORA project

Autores/as

  • Dirk W. Lachenmeier Chemisches und Veterinäruntersuchungsamt (CVUA) Karlsruhe. Enviar correspondencia a: Dirk W. Lachenmeier Chemisches und Veterinäruntersuchungsamt (CVUA) Karlsruhe, Weissenburger Strasse 3, D-76187 Karlsruhe, Germany. Tel: +49-721-926-5434, Fax: +49-721-926-5539
  • Jenny Leitz Chemisches und Veterinäruntersuchungsamt (CVUA) Karlsruhe.
  • Kerstin Schoeberl Chemisches und Veterinäruntersuchungsamt (CVUA) Karlsruhe.
  • Thomas Kuballa Chemisches und Veterinäruntersuchungsamt (CVUA) Karlsruhe.
  • Irene Straub Chemisches und Veterinäruntersuchungsamt (CVUA) Karlsruhe.
  • Jürgen Rehm Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), Toronto, Canada Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada Epidemiological Research Unit, Institute for Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, TU Dresden, Dresden.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.20882/adicciones.156

Palabras clave:

alcoholic beverages, unrecorded alcohol, ethyl carbamate, copper, Europe, quality

Resumen

Antecedentes. En la región europea de la OMS, el consumo promedio de etanol puro no registrado per cápita de los adultos en 2005 fue de 2,67 litros, lo cual representa el 22% del consumo total de 12,20 L. A pesar de la preocupación sobre los daños potenciales para la salud de la composición química del alcohol no registrado, hay sorprendentemente pocos datos sobre dicho problema en la Región Europea. Este estudio informa sobre los resultados del proyecto Alcohol Measures for Public Health Research Alliance (AMPHORA), que evaluaron la calidad de alcohol no registrado en un estudio a escala europea. Métodos. Se recogieron muestras de alcohol no registrado en 16 países europeos y se analizaron químicamente los parámetros de posible interés en relación con la salud. Los umbrales para los parámetros fueron definidos en base a los riesgos potenciales para la salud del consumo de alcohol que se hace en un día. Resultados. El promedio de la concentración alcohólica de los productos vitivinícolas no registrados fue de 14,9% y el de los destilados no registrados fue de 47,8%. La mitad de las muestras (n= 57) mostró la calidad del alcohol aceptable. La otra mitad (n= 58) mostró una o varias deficiencias, siendo el problema más frecuente la contaminación de carbamato de etilo (n= 29). Otros problemas incluyen la presencia de cobre (n= 20), manganeso (n= 16) y acetaldehído (n= 12). El resto de parámetros (incluyendo el metanol, alcoholes superiores, los ftalatos) sólo fue raras veces problemático (superar el límite fijado en menos de 10 muestras). El precio del alcohol no registrado fue de aproximadamente el 45% del precio del alcohol registrado. Conclusiones. El mayor problema del consumo de alcohol no registrado parece ser el etanol en sí mismo, ya que suele ser de mayor concentración y su bajo precio puede contribuir aún más a beber cantidades mayores. En comparación con los efectos del propio etanol, los problemas de contaminación detectados pueden ser de menor importancia. El consumo de contaminantes, incluso en el peor de los casos, supondrá escenarios de ingestas diarias tolerables de estas sustancias.
Background. In the WHO region Europe, the average unrecorded adult per capita alcohol consumption was 2.67 L pure ethanol in 2005, which is 22% of the total consumption of 12.20 L. Despite concerns about potential health harms from the chemical composition of unrecorded alcohol, there are surprisingly few data on the problem in the European Region. This study reports the results from the Alcohol Measures for Public Health Research Alliance (AMPHORA) project, which assessed the quality of unrecorded alcohol in a Europe-wide study. Methods. Samples of unrecorded alcohol were collected in 16 European countries and chemically analyzed for potentially health-relevant parameters. Thresholds for parameters were defined based on potential health hazards of daily drinking. Results. The average alcoholic strength of unrecorded wine products was 14.9% vol, and 47.8% vol in unrecorded spirits. One half of the samples (n=57) showed acceptable alcohol quality. The other half (n=58) showed one or several deficits with the most prevalent problem being ethyl carbamate contamination (n=29). Other problems included copper (n=20), manganese (n=16) and acetaldehyde (n=12). All other parameters (including methanol, higher alcohols, phthalates) were only seldom problematic (limit exceedance in less than 10 samples). The price of unrecorded alcohol was approximately 45% of the price of recorded alcohol. Conclusions. The major problem regarding unrecorded alcohol appears to be ethanol itself, as it is often higher in strength and its lower price may further contribute to higher drinking amounts. Compared to the health effects of ethanol, the contamination problems detected may be of minor importance as exposure will only in worst-case scenarios reach tolerable daily intakes of these substances.

Biografía del autor/a

Dirk W. Lachenmeier, Chemisches und Veterinäruntersuchungsamt (CVUA) Karlsruhe. Enviar correspondencia a: Dirk W. Lachenmeier Chemisches und Veterinäruntersuchungsamt (CVUA) Karlsruhe, Weissenburger Strasse 3, D-76187 Karlsruhe, Germany. Tel: +49-721-926-5434, Fax: +49-721-926-5539

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Publicado

2011-06-01

Número

Vol. 23 Núm. 2 (2011)

Sección

Originales