Natural recovery from alcohol: a systematic review of the literature 2006–2019

Abstract

Objective: The objective of this study is to review the scientific literature on natural recovery from alcohol. The study examined and compared the methodology, alcohol use recovery variables, reasons for recovery, and maintenance factors among studies of natural recovery from alcohol. Methods: Articles published in English between 2006–2019 were systematically searched through the PUBMED, EMBASE and SCOPUS electronic databases. Three reviewers independently extracted data using a standard form. Results: After screening 412 records, eleven studies were selected and data extracted. All eleven studies were self-reports. Five of the studies used advertisements for recruitment and sampling, three studies had control groups, and seven of eleven studies were conducted in the United States. Participants tended to be older (mean age 55.2 years), educated (mean education 14.3 years), White (76.1%), and unmarried (64.9%). Roughly half were male (62.3%) and employed (54.1%). There were 13 reasons of natural recovery, most were health-related, finance-related, and due to negative personal effects (45.5%). The most important maintenance factor was social support/change in social group (36.4%) Conclusions: Most studies were conducted in the United States, among older, White men. Qualitative studies where contexts and situations are assessed and critically analyzed may be important to move the field forward.