Jul 01, 2014 04:28 PM EDT By Staff Reporter, UniversityHerald Reporter

Alcohol use disorders may be linked to decreased "work trajectory," according to a recent study.

American researchers found that workers with  Alcohol use disorders  -- based on factors such as drinking more than intended or unsuccessful attempts to cut down on drinking -- are more likely to have a flat or declining work trajectory.  

For the study, researchers studied the relationship between occupation and alcohol use disorders in workers followed up from early adulthood to middle age. They focused on the "substantive complexity" of work as an indicator of work trajectory-whether individuals were progressing in their careers in terms of factors such as decision latitude and expanded work abilities.

Researchers said alcohol use disorders were initially present in about 15 percent of men and 7.5 percent of women.

Researchers found that lower work trajectory was linked to a higher rate of Alcohol use disorders -- both initially and during follow-up. For both men and women, Alcohol use disorder rates were decreased with higher work trajectory.

In the workplace, the impact of alcoholism can lead to tardiness o sleeping on the job, theft, poor decision making and lower morale of co-workers.

According to the National Council on Alcoholism And Drug Dependence, workers with alcohol problems were 2.7 times more likely than workers without drinking problems to have injury-related absences.

Together with previous reports, the study suggests that "declining occupational trajectory is a consequence of AUD development," rather than a predictor. However, the link between alcohol use disorders and occupation appears to be "complex and reinforcing."

They add that women's career paths "may be more readily disrupted" by alcohol use disorders, compared to men's.

The findings were recently published in the July issue of Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

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