A high number of single women in South Korea turn to alcohol to relieve stress or depression, a survey showed Wednesday.

According to the survey by Seoul National University’s College of Nursing, about 38 percent of respondents said that they are under heavy stress in their daily life, with 13.5 percent feeling sad or despairing for at least two consecutive weeks in the past year.

Some 1,700 single women aged 19 or above participated in the national health and nutrition survey between 2010 and 2013. 
Among the respondents, the “drinking score” -- the score of Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test -- was higher than those with relatively lower stress. The index was developed by the World Health Organization to evaluate the level of drinking habit.

The AUDIT score of stressed-out single women was 6.9 points, which was 1.25 points higher than those who felt less stress.

The score of those with depression was 7.81 points, which was about 2 points higher than those with no depression.

The score is determined based on the frequency and amount of drinking as well as self-control ability. People with an AUDIT score of over 8 are considered to have a problematic drinking habit.

“The survey showed that single women not only have higher stress or depression but also tend to cope with their mental problems by drinking,” said researcher Kim Hyo-jung who participated in the study.

“Drinking can negatively impacted their health, including pregnancy.”

Another survey in 2014 by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs had shown that the high-risk drinking rate -- drinking at least five glasses of alcohol a day, more than twice a week -- had surged to 6 percent in 2012 from 3.4 percent in 2005 among women in their 20s, 30s, and 40s.

Experts have noted the higher risk of alcohol dependency among women who choose to drink alone to evade societal prejudice against women who drink.

The study was published in the latest issue of Perspectives in Nursing Science, a journal published by Seoul National University Research Institute of Nursing Science.

By Lee Hyun-jeong (rene@heraldcorp.com)