Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Alcohol Use, Sexual Risk Behavior and STIs Among Married Men in Mumbai, India

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
AIDS and Behavior Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This paper examines the relationship of frequency, type of alcohol use, sexual risk behaviors and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among married men living in economically marginal communities in Mumbai, India. The findings indicate that men who consume alcohol daily were four times more likely to have had extramarital sex in the past 12 months. In terms of sexually transmitted infections, men who were daily drinkers were four times more likely than those not consuming alcohol in the last month to have gonorrhea (NG) and Chlamydia (CT) infection and three times more likely to have had a past history of exposure to herpes simplex virus-2 (HSV-2) and/or syphilis as determined by biological testing. These results demonstrate that men with daily alcohol use are at greatest risk for STIs and need to be targeted for community outreach, de-addiction services and sex risk reduction education program in India and elsewhere.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Patel SK, Niranjan S. Linkages between substance use, couple characteristics and reproductive behavior in India. In: Tripathy SN, Bishoyi D, Patel SK, editors. Dynamics of population issues. New Delhi: Sonali Publications; 2007.

    Google Scholar 

  2. Basu K. Globalization and culture. India Today; 20 April 1998.

  3. Benegal V. India: alcohol and public health. Addiction. 2005;100(8):1051–6.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Ustun TB. The world health surveys. In: Murray CJL, Evans DB, editors. Health systems performance assessment: debates, methods and empiricism. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2003.

    Google Scholar 

  5. MacDonald TK, Zanna MP, Fong GT. Why common sense goes out the window: effects of alcohol on intentions to use condoms. Pers Soc Psychol Bull. 1996;22:763–75.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Weinhardt LS, Carey MP. Does alcohol lead to sexual risk behaviour? Findings from event-level research. Annu Rev Sex Res. 2000;11:125–57.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Kalichman SC, Weinhardt L, DiFonzo K, Austin J, Luke W. Sensation seeking and alcohol use as markers of sexual transmission risk behaviours in HIV-positive men. Ann Behav Med. 2002;24:229–35.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Testa M. The impact of men’s alcohol consumption on perpetration of sexual aggression. Clin Psychol Rev. 2002;22:1239–63.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. NACO. National baseline high risk and bridge population behavioural surveillance survey 2002. New Delhi: National AIDS Control Organization; 2002.

  10. Sivaram S, Latkin CA, Solomon S, Celentano DD. HIV prevention in India: focus on men, alcohol use and social networks. Harv Health Policy Rev. 2006;7(2):125–34.

    Google Scholar 

  11. Chaturvedi S, Singh Z, Banerjee A, Khera A, Joshi RK, Dhrubajyoti D. Sexual behaviour among long distance truck drivers. Indian J Commun Med. 2006;31(3):153–6.

    Google Scholar 

  12. Go V, Sethulakshmi C, et al. When HIV-prevention messages and gender norms clash: the impact of domestic violence on women’s HIV risk in slums of Chennai, India. AIDS Behav. 2003;7(3):263–72.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Halphen-Felsher BL, Millstein SG, Ellen JM. Relationship of alcohol use and risky sexual behavior: a review and analysis of findings. J Adolesc Health. 1996;19:331–6.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Zuckerman M, Eysenck S, Eysenck HJ. Sensation seeking in England and America: cross-cultural, age and sex comparisons. J Consult Clin Psychol. 1978;46:139–49.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Zuckerman M. Behavioural expressions and biosocial bases of sensation seeking. New York: Cambridge University Press; 1994.

    Google Scholar 

  16. Chandra PS, Krishna VAS, Benegal V, Ramakrishna J. High-risk sexual behaviour and sensation seeking among heavy alcohol users. Indian J Med Res. 2003.

  17. Das S, Yemul V, Deshmukh R. Incidence and association of HIV and other STDs in 200 persons belonging to a high risk group in central Mumbai. Venereology. 1998;11(1):19–23.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Madhivanan P, Hernandez A, et al. Alcohol use by men is a risk factor for the acquisition of sexually transmitted infections and human immunodeficiency virus from female sex workers in Mumbai, India. Sex Transm Dis. 2005;32(11):685–90.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Schensul SL, Verma RK, Nastasi BK. Responding to men’s sexual concerns: research and intervention in slum communities in Mumbai, India. Int J Men’s Health. 2004;3:197–220.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Schensul SL, Mekki-Berrada A, Nastasi BK, Saggurti N, Verma RK. Healing traditions and men’s sexual health in Mumbai, India: the realities of practiced medicine in urban poor communities. Soc Sci Med. 2006;62:2774–85.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Saggurti N, Schensul SL, Verma RK. Migration, mobility and sexual risk behaviour in Mumbai, India: mobile men with non-residential wife show increased risk. AIDS Behav. 2009;13(5):921–7.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  22. Schensul SL, Hawkes S, Saggurti N, Verma RK, Narvekar SS, Nastasi BK, Burleson JA, Risbud A. STIs in men in Mumbai slum communities: the relationship of prevalence to risk behavior. Sex Transm Dis. 2007;34(7):444–50.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  23. WHO. Guidelines for the management of sexually transmitted infections. Geneva, Switzerland: World Health Organization; 2003.

    Google Scholar 

  24. Go VF, Solomon S, Srikrishnan AK, Sivaram S, Johnson SC, Sripaipan T, Murugavel KG, Latkin C, Mayer K, Celentano DD. HIV rates and risk behaviors are low in the general population of men in Southern India but high in alcohol venues: results from 2 probability samples. J Acq Immune Def Syndr. 2007;46(4):491–7.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS) and Macro International. National family health survey (NFHS-3), 2005–2006. Vol I. Mumbai, India: IIPS; 2007. http://www.measuredhs.com/pubs/pdf/FRIND3. Accessed 3 July 2009.

Download references

Acknowledgements

This study was supported by the National Institute of Mental Health grant R01-MH064875. The authors would like to thank the organizers of the Alcohol and Sexual Risk Conference, Dr. Jean J. Schensul, Senior Researcher and Founding Director of the Institute for Community Research in Hartford, CT, USA and Dr. S.K. Singh, Associate Professor, International Institute for Population Sciences, Mumbai, India, where this paper was first presented. Source of Support: Analyses for this study were conducted via funding from the National Institute of Mental Health (Grant #: R01-MH064875).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Population Council, 142, Golf Links, 1st Floor, New Delhi, 110 003, India

    Niranjan Saggurti

  2. University of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington, CT, USA

    Stephen L. Schensul

  3. International Center for Research on Women, New Delhi, India

    Rajendra Singh

Authors
  1. Niranjan Saggurti
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Stephen L. Schensul
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Rajendra Singh
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Niranjan Saggurti.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Saggurti, N., Schensul, S.L. & Singh, R. Alcohol Use, Sexual Risk Behavior and STIs Among Married Men in Mumbai, India. AIDS Behav 14 (Suppl 1), 40–47 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-010-9728-6

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-010-9728-6

Keywords

Search

Navigation