ObjectiveTo investigate the association of alcohol drinking and the incident risk of type 2 diabetes in men and to provide evidences for early prevention of diabetes.

MethodsRural adult males without diabetes in Deqing County， Zhejiang Province were enrolled. A dynamic prospective cohort study was conducted. Data were collected through questionnaires， physical examination， experimental measurements and a electronic follow-up database. Cox multivariate regression was performed to assess the association of alcohol drinking and the incident risk of type 2 diabetes in men.

ResultsDuring the follow-up period （7.15±2.90 years）， 354 men developed diabetes， and the incidence rate was 4.15/1 000 person-years. After adjusting for confounding factors， the incident risk of type 2 diabetes among the men with high alcohol drinking frequency （≥7 times/week） and low single alcohol intake （0.1-19.9 g/occasion） was lower than that among non-alcohol drinkers， and the value of HR （95%CI） was 0.72 （0.56-0.94） and 0.54 （0.30-0.99）， respectively. Consumption of ≥40.0 g alcohol per occasion 3-6 times a week increased the incidence of type 2 diabetes， and consumption of <40.0 g alcohol per occasion over 7 times a week decreased the incidence of type 2 diabetes， with the value of HR （95%CI） of 1.53 （1.02-2.30） and 0.52 （0.28-0.99） respectively.

ConclusionDifferent alcohol drinking patterns affect the incident risk of type 2 diabetes among rural adult males in Deqing County. Further study on alcohol drinking and diabetes may have ethical and practical significance for the prevention and control of diabetes in rural China.