A developmental perspective on alcohol and youths 16 to 20 years of age

"Alcohol will never run out": Socio-ecological drivers of adolescent boys' alcohol use in Kilimanjaro Region, Tanzania

Heavy alcohol use amongst adolescent boys is a major public health concern in many countries. It is associated with a range of negative physical and mental health outcomes and predicts alcohol-related problems in adulthood. In Kilimanjaro Region, adolescent boys' alcohol use is widespread, and higher than other regions in Tanzania. An understanding of causal and contextual factors that influence the use of alcohol is needed to inform the development and implementation of effective alcohol prevention interventions. This study aimed to explore these socio-ecological factors in-depth amongst adolescent boys, young men and key stakeholders in Kilimanjaro Region, Tanzania. Between August 2022 and June 2023, multi-method, participatory, qualitative methods including: ethnographic observations (8 weeks), 37 in-depth interviews, 14 focus group discussions and participatory adolescent activities were used to elicit perceptions on factors driving adolescent boys' alcohol use in two (rural/urban) settings. Data were triangulated and deductively analysed, guided by Bronfenbrenner's socio-ecological framework. This study found many dynamic and inter-related factors linked to alcohol use within adolescents' social, cultural, economic, regulatory, and physical environments. In a context of widespread availability of alcohol, low enforcement of alcohol regulation and (mis)conceptions around the benefits of alcohol use (e.g. curative and/or nutritional properties), parental and cultural influences largely determined the initiation of use in childhood and younger adolescence; employment status, peers, lack of alternative recreational activity and social norms around independence appeared to drive continued and increased use in older adolescence. Factors and their impact varied between rural and urban settings. In conclusion, a wide range of determinants and drivers of alcohol use among ABYM work at multiple socio-ecological levels especially parental, cultural and socioeconomic factors. This suggests that effective prevention requires a systems approach intervening across these levels. For example, incorporating education/awareness raising, increased law enforcement, parent-child communication and problem-solving, and income generation activities.

Assessment of Hippocampal-Related Behavioral Changes in Adolescent Rats of both Sexes Following Voluntary Intermittent Ethanol Intake and Noise Exposure: A Putative Underlying Mechanism and Implementation of a Non-pharmacological Preventive Strategy

Ethanol (EtOH) intake and noise exposure are particularly concerning among human adolescents because the potential to harm brain. Unfortunately, putative underlying mechanisms remain to be elucidated. Moreover, implementing non-pharmacological strategies, such as enriched environments (EE), would be pertinent in the field of neuroprotection. This study aims to explore possible underlying triggering mechanism of hippocampus-dependent behaviors in adolescent animals of both sexes following ethanol intake, noise exposure, or a combination of both, as well as the impact of EE. Adolescent Wistar rats of both sexes were subjected to an intermittent voluntary EtOH intake paradigm for one week. A subgroup of animals was exposed to white noise for two hours after the last session of EtOH intake. Some animals of both groups were housed in EE cages. Hippocampal-dependent behavioral assessment and hippocampal oxidative state evaluation were performed. Results show that different hippocampal-dependent behavioral alterations might be induced in animals of both sexes after EtOH intake and sequential noise exposure, that in some cases are sex-specific. Moreover, hippocampal oxidative imbalance seems to be one of the potential underlying mechanisms. Additionally, most behavioral and oxidative alterations were prevented by EE. These findings suggest that two frequently found environmental agents may impact behavior and oxidative pathways in both sexes in an animal model. In addition, EE resulted a partially effective neuroprotective strategy. Therefore, it could be suggested that the implementation of a non-pharmacological approach might also potentially provide neuroprotective advantages against other challenges. Finally, considering its potential for translational human benefit might be worth.

A test of competing mediators linking trouble sleeping to cannabis use in adolescents and emerging adults

This study examined day-level associations between trouble sleeping and three cannabis-use indices (likelihood/quantity of use and impaired control). We evaluated behavioral and cognitive mediators of the association between trouble sleeping and cannabis outcomes. Youth (N = 86, ages 15-24, 48.8% female, 58.8% White, 18.6% Latine) who regularly used cannabis were recruited for an intervention study. This preregistered secondary data analysis leveraged data from a 1-week ecological momentary assessment (EMA) study completed prior to intervention. Trouble sleeping, cannabis use, and impaired control over use were assessed each morning; negative affect, risk-taking propensity, and cannabis craving were assessed multiple times and aggregated to create a daily average. Multilevel structural equation modeling evaluated hypothesized temporally sequenced associations and putative mechanisms at the day (i.e., within) and person (i.e., between) level. In bivariate analyses at the person level, there were large-effect associations between trouble sleeping and craving and negative affect, and between craving and cannabis-use likelihood and quantity (rs from .34 to .48). In multilevel analyses at the day level, participants were less likely to use cannabis the next day after reporting more trouble sleeping (β = -.65, p < .001). Trouble sleeping was not directly associated with subsequent cannabis-use quantity or impaired control, or indirectly via negative affect, risk-taking propensity, or craving. Trouble sleeping had differential relations with cannabis-use indices at the day and person levels. To promote youth health and reduce cannabis use, future research may consider the unique, person- and situation-driven mechanistic processes at play. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Variation by race/ethnicity-gender in the relationship between arrest history and alcohol use

BACKGROUND

Alcohol use contributes to the national burden of morbidity and mortality in the United States. Arrest, as a unique form of criminal justice system involvement, may be related to alcohol use from adolescence to adulthood. This study investigates the relationship between arrest and alcohol use across race/ethnicity-gender (R/E-G) status (e.g., Black, Latinx, and White men and women) as youth age.

METHODS

Data from 17 waves (1997-2015) of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, 1997 cohort (N = 8901) were used to explore how variation in R/E-G moderates the relationship between arrest history and alcohol use trajectories from 13 to 30 years old. Multilevel zero-inflated Poisson and Poisson regression were used to assess R/E-G variation in the relationship between arrest history and days of alcohol consumption, drinks per drinking occasion, and days of binge drinking after accounting for covariates, including incarceration.

RESULTS

The findings indicate that an arrest history is associated with alcohol use, and these results varied by R/E-G status, age, and alcohol use outcome. Those with an arrest history reported more days of drinking than their counterparts without an arrest; yet, the magnitude and direction of average drinks per occasion and binge drinking days varied by R/E-G status and age. Paradoxically, Black men, Black women, and Latinx men with an arrest history reported fewer days of binge drinking as they aged than their counterparts without an arrest.

CONCLUSIONS

A history of arrest is important for alcohol use from adolescence to adulthood and varies by R/E-G status, age, and alcohol use outcome. This work confirms previous scholarship showing that arrest and alcohol use are socially patterned and R/E-G status is an essential consideration in understanding the relationship. Future work should include additional identities and health behaviors and the consequences related to alcohol use outcomes.

Toxicological evaluation of alcohol and substance abuse in children and adolescents

Unhealthy behaviors such as use of alcohol and drug usually begin during adolescence. Izmir is on transit route for illicit substance due to geographical situation. Children and adolescents are the most important threatened group in terms of alcohol and substance abuse. In this study, it was aimed to investigate alcohol and substance use profile of children and adolescents in Izmir/Turkey with the toxicological analysis results obtained from Addiction Toxicology Laboratory.Urine and blood samples of 4524 cases at and under the age of 18 years coming from various departments to the laboratory in 2015-2016 were analyzed by enzymatic immunoassay. Information and analysis results of the cases were obtained by retrospective analysis of the hospital system.83,3% of the cases were male and the mean age was 16,69 ± 1,63. Alcohol and/or substance use was determined in 13,2% of the cases. Among the cases with positive results of analysis, cannabis (33%) was mostly detected and was followed by amphetamine type stimulants (ATS, 15%), polysubstance use (15%) and alcohol (13%). While cannabis, polysubstance use and ATS were the most common in male, ethyl alcohol, ATS and benzodiazepine were mostly detected in female. There was a significant increase in the substance use rate in 2016 compared to the previous year.A substance use profile was obtained through drug testing in adolescents who are in the risk group for substance use. In this context, our data will be indicative for the development of new and more effective preventive strategies targeting children and adolescents.

The role of parental maladaptive emotion socialization in the risk process for negative urgency and drinking behavior in adolescence

INTRODUCTION

Negative urgency (the tendency to act rashly when experiencing negative emotions) is a robust risk factor for a number of problem behaviors, including early adolescent drinking. Little is known about the factors that precede the development of negative urgency, and hence the full etiology of this component of risk. The current study aimed to investigate the possibility that facets of childhood maladaptive emotion socialization (the tendency for children's expressions of emotions to be met with punishment, minimized, or invoke a reaction of distress from their parents/caretakers) increases risk for the development of negative urgency and drinking behavior.

METHOD

Self-report measures of negative urgency, subfacets of maladaptive emotion socialization, and drinking behavior were collected during the 2021-2022 academic year from a sample of 428 high school students (mean age = 14.7, SD = 0.09, 44% female), assessed twice over the course of a semester, reflecting a 4-month longitudinal window.

RESULTS

Distress emotion socialization predicted increases in negative urgency, minimizing predicted decreases in negative urgency, and punitive did not provide significant prediction. Additionally, results found that higher levels of both negative urgency and distress emotion socialization increased adolescents' likelihood of having tried alcohol. These processes were invariant across race and gender.

CONCLUSIONS

The present study may inform the future creation of prevention and intervention efforts aimed at reducing maladaptive emotion socialization and increasing adaptive emotion socialization. Successful reductions in negative urgency as a consequence of increased adaptive emotion socialization may then lead to decreases in adolescent drinking and other impulsigenic behaviors.

Lifetime use of alcohol and cannabis among U.S. adolescents across age: Exploring differential patterns by sex and race/ethnicity using the 2019 NSDUH data

Background

Early use of alcohol and cannabis is associated with health and social problems. It is unclear how lifetime use changes for each additional year of age during adolescence, and whether this change varies by sex and race/ethnicity. This study characterized lifetime rates of alcohol and cannabis use by age among 12- to 17-year-old American youth and explored differential patterns by sex and race/ethnicity.

Methods

Data were obtained from the 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Analyses were restricted to 12-17-year-olds who were non-Hispanic White, non-Hispanic Black, or Hispanic/Latino (n = 11,830). We estimated the increase in lifetime use of alcohol and cannabis by age for the full sample and stratified by sex and race/ethnicity. Slopes of the regression lines were compared to assess differential patterns across groups.

Results

In these cross-sectional analyses, reported lifetime use increased substantially from age 12 to 17 for alcohol (6.4 % to 53.2 %) and cannabis (1.3 % to 35.9 %). The increase in lifetime alcohol use was slightly, but not significantly, steeper among girls than boys (F1,8 = 3.40, p = 0.09). White and Latino youth showed similar rates of increase in lifetime alcohol use, which was significantly flatter among Black youth (F2,12=21.26, p<0.0001). Latino youth had a slightly, but not significantly, steeper increase in lifetime cannabis use than White and Black youth (F2,12=3.17, p = 0.07).

Conclusions

Reports of lifetime alcohol and cannabis use substantially increase from age 12 to 17 and the rates are different according to sex and race/ethnicity, highlighting the need for early and tailored substance use prevention in adolescents.

Adolescent alcohol and nicotine exposure alters the adult response to alcohol use

Adolescence through young adulthood is a unique period of neuronal development and maturation. Numerous agents can alter this process, resulting in long-term neurological and biological consequences. In the clinical literature, it is frequently reported that adolescent alcohol consumption increases the propensity to develop addictions, including alcohol use disorder (AUD), during adulthood. A general limitation of both clinical and human pre-clinical adolescent alcohol research is the high rate of co-using/abusing more than one drug during adolescence, such as co-using/abusing alcohol with nicotine. A primary goal of basic research is elucidating neuroadaptations produced by adolescent alcohol exposure/consumption that promote alcohol and other drug self-administration in adulthood. The long-term goal is to develop pharmacotherapeutics for the prevention or amelioration of these neuroadaptations. This review will focus on studies that have examined the effects of adolescent alcohol and nicotine exposure on adult alcohol consumption, the hypersensitivity of the mesolimbic dopaminergic system, and enhanced responses not only to alcohol but also to nicotine during adulthood. Again, the long-term goal is to identify potential cholinergic agents to prevent or ameliorate the consequences of, peri-adolescent alcohol abuse.

Sibling influences on adolescent alcohol use during the spring 2020 COVID-19 pandemic shutdown

OBJECTIVE

To examine the bidirectional associations between adolescent siblings' alcohol use before and during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in Spring 2020 and whether youths' stress about missed social connections (i.e., social disruption stress) moderated these associations.

METHOD

The sample consisted of 682 families (2,046 participants) with two adolescent siblings (older siblings: Mage = 15.67 years, 51% female; younger siblings: Mage = 13.14 years, 48% female) and one parent (Mage = 45.15 years; 85% female) from five Midwestern U.S. states. Siblings reported on their own drinking and social disruption stress before and during the onset of the pandemic via online surveys.

RESULTS

Accounting for younger siblings' earlier drinking and other confounders, older siblings' prepandemic drinking predicted a greater likelihood of younger siblings' drinking during the Spring 2020 pandemic shutdown. This association was not moderated by younger siblings' social disruption stress. The association between younger siblings' prepandemic drinking and older siblings' drinking during the shutdown was moderated by older siblings' social disruption stress. Specifically, younger siblings' earlier drinking was more strongly related to older siblings' drinking during the shutdown if older siblings reported more social disruption stress.

CONCLUSIONS

Siblings are important socialization agents of alcohol use during adolescence. Sibling interventions may be particularly salient during times of stress and isolation when youths' social interactions with peers may be limited. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Drinking motives, personality traits and life stressors-identifying pathways to harmful alcohol use in adolescence using a panel network approach

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Models of alcohol use risk suggest that drinking motives represent the most proximal risk factors on which more distal factors converge. However, little is known about how distinct risk factors influence each other and alcohol use on different temporal scales (within a given moment versus over time). We aimed to estimate the dynamic associations of distal (personality and life stressors) and proximal (drinking motives) risk factors, and their relationship to alcohol use in adolescence and early adulthood using a novel graphical vector autoregressive (GVAR) panel network approach.

DESIGN, SETTING AND CASES

We estimated panel networks on data from the IMAGEN study, a longitudinal European cohort study following adolescents across three waves (aged 16, 19 and 22 years). Our sample consisted of 1829 adolescents (51% females) who reported alcohol use on at least one assessment wave.

MEASUREMENTS

Risk factors included personality traits (NEO-FFI: neuroticism, extraversion, openness, agreeableness and conscientiousness; SURPS: impulsivity and sensation-seeking), stressful life events (LEQ: sum scores of stressful life events), and drinking motives [drinking motives questionnaire (DMQ): social, enhancement, conformity, coping anxiety and coping depression]. We assessed alcohol use [alcohol use disorders identification test (AUDIT): quantity and frequency] and alcohol-related problems (AUDIT: related problems).

FINDINGS

Within a given moment, social [partial correlation (pcor) = 0.17] and enhancement motives (pcor = 0.15) co-occurred most strongly with drinking quantity and frequency, while coping depression motives (pcor = 0.13), openness (pcor = 0.05) and impulsivity (pcor = 0.09) were related to alcohol-related problems. The temporal network showed no predictive associations between distal risk factors and drinking motives. Social motives (beta = 0.21), previous alcohol use (beta = 0.11) and openness (beta = 0.10) predicted alcohol-related problems over time (all P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONS

Heavy and frequent alcohol use, along with social drinking motives, appear to be key targets for preventing the development of alcohol-related problems throughout late adolescence. We found no evidence for personality traits and life stressors predisposing towards distinct drinking motives over time.

Engagement in types of activities and frequency of alcohol use in a national sample of United States adolescents

OBJECTIVE

Adolescents with fewer sources of environmental reinforcement may be at risk for alcohol use. Behavioral economic theories posit that engagement in some activities may facilitate alcohol use, whereas other activities may be incompatible with use and reduce likelihood of alcohol use. It is unclear which types of activities may facilitate or may be incompatible with alcohol use in adolescence. Using a national sample of adolescents, the current study examined differences in engagement with types of activities that may be incompatible with alcohol use, compared among adolescents who endorsed alcohol use, and adolescents who did not.

METHOD

Data from the 2019 Monitoring the Future (MTF) study (N = 4626) were analyzed. Potentially incompatible and facilitating activities, and alcohol-involved activities were identified from pre-existing survey measures. Confirmatory factor analysis, measurement invariance, and structural equation modeling were used to examine patterns in activity engagement among those who endorsed alcohol use and those who did not.

RESULTS

Participants who did not endorse alcohol use reported higher engagement in activities that may be incompatible with alcohol use, including enjoyment from school and going to the mall (p < .001). Participants who endorsed alcohol use reported higher engagement in activities that may facilitate alcohol use (p < .001), such as spending time with friends and attending parties. Facilitating activities (β = 0.15, p < .001) and alcohol-involved activities (β = 0.70, p < .001) were positively associated with alcohol use frequency. Observed effect sizes were small in magnitude for all findings.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings support the premise of behavioral economic theory, suggesting some activities may serve as protective factors against alcohol use frequency while other activities may facilitate alcohol use among adolescents. National surveys may consider adding specific measure of activity engagement to identify activities that may be incompatible with alcohol use among adolescents.

Age and sex-specific differences of mindfulness traits with measurement invariance controlled in Chinese adult population: A pilot study

Objectives

To examine the relationships of age and sex with mindfulness traits among Chinese adults with controlling for measurement invariance.

Methods

A total of 1777 participants completing the Five-Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire were included for analysis. Their age and sex information were also collected. Descriptive analysis, Pearson's Chi-Square test and analysis of variance were performed to test the age- and sex-specific differences, measurement invariance was examined by confirmatory factor analysis.

Results

Excellent data fit to the model indicated configural, metric, and scalar invariance across age and sex. Participants aged 60 or above scored significantly higher in dimensions of acting with awareness, nonjudging of inner experience, nonreactivity to inner experience, and the total scores than younger individuals, who had higher scores in the observing domain. In addition, females scored higher in describing and observing than males, while the latter had higher score in nonreactivity to inner experience.

Conclusions

The Five-Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire Mindfulness showed acceptable measurement invariance across age and sex in Chinese adult population. The old and the young differs in the traits of awareness, observing, nonjudging of inner experience, nonreactivity to inner experience and the total mindfulness level, while males and females varied in describing, observing and nonreactivity to inner experience. Individual differences should be considered and well addressed in future studies on mindfulness.

Measuring alcohol use among adolescents in Africa: A systematic scoping review of consumption, screening and assessment tools

ISSUES

Globally, adolescent drinking is a major public health concern. Alcohol measurements are influenced by local consumption practices, patterns and perceptions of alcohol-related harm. This is the first review to examine what tools are used to measure alcohol consumption, or screen for or assess harmful use in African adolescents, and how these tools take into account the local context.

APPROACH

A systematic scoping review was conducted in line with the Arksey and O'Malley framework. A search in MEDLINE, CINAHL, Global Health and the Cochrane Database covered the period of 2000-2020.

KEY FINDINGS

The search identified 121 papers across 25 African countries. A range of single- and multi-item tools were identified. Very few adaptations of existing questions were specified, and this search identified no tools developed by local researchers that were fundamentally different from established tools often designed in the USA or Europe. Inconsistencies were found in the use of cut-off scores; many studies used adult cut-off scores.

IMPLICATIONS AND CONCLUSION

The possible impact of African drinking practices and culture on the accuracy of alcohol screening tools is currently unknown, but is also not taken into account by most research. This, in combination with a limited geographical distribution of alcohol-related research across the continent and inconsistent use of age- and gender-specific cut-off scores, points towards probable inaccuracies in current data on adolescent alcohol use in Africa.

Self-management with alcohol over lifespan: psychological mechanisms, neurobiological underpinnings, and risk assessment

Self-management includes all behavioural measures and cognitive activities aimed at coping with challenges arising throughout the lifespan. While virtually all of these challenges can be met without pharmacological means, alcohol consumption has long been instrumentalized as a supporting tool to help coping with problems arising selectively at adolescence, adulthood, and ageing. Here, we present, to our knowledge, the first systematic review of alcohol instrumentalization throughout lifespan. We searched MEDLINE, Google Scholar, PsycINFO and CINAHL (from Jan, 1990, to Dec, 2022) and analysed consumption patterns, goals and potential neurobiological mechanisms. Evidence shows a regular non-addictive use of alcohol to self-manage developmental issues during adolescence, adulthood, and ageing. Alcohol is selectively used to overcome problems arising from dysfunctional personality traits, which manifest in adolescence. A large range of psychiatric disorders gives rise to alcohol use for the self-management of distinct symptoms starting mainly in adulthood. We identify those neuropharmacological effects of alcohol that selectively serve self-management under specific conditions. Finally, we discuss the adverse effects and associated risks that arise from the use of alcohol for self-management. Even well-controlled alcohol use adversely impacts health. Based on these findings, we suggest the implementation of an entirely new view. Health policy action may actively embrace both sides of the phenomenon through a personalized informed use that allows for harm-controlled self-management with alcohol.

Prevalence and Factors Associated with Alcohol Consumption Among Secondary School Students in Nekemte, Ethiopia: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background

Alcohol consumption is a major public health concern among adolescents and young adults. Adolescence is an important period of human growth. Alcohol consumption during this age will lead to a variety of problems: health, social, economic, etc. Further, research studies have shown that alcohol consumption, both at normal and above normal levels, will lead to a wide range of health problems. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the prevalence and associated factors for alcohol consumption among secondary school students in Nekemte town, East Wollega Zone, Ethiopia, in 2022.

Methods

A school-based cross-sectional research design approach is used. The data is collected using a structured and self-administered questionnaire. Through systematic random sampling, 291 out of 15,798 students ranging from 9 through 12 grades are chosen. The students selected from each school are proportional to their total strength.

Results

The study is conducted on 291 participants with a mean age of 17.5 ± 1.5 years. Of them, 49.8% are males, and the remaining 50.2% are females. It revealed that 27.84% of participants consume alcohol: 30.3% males and 25.3% females. Age (AOR: 2.755, 95% CI: 1.307-5.809), Urban location (AOR: 1.674, 95% CI: 0.962-2.914), Smoking (AOR: 0.426, 95% CI: 0.104-1.740), Chewing Khat (AOR: 2.185, 95% CI: 0.539-8.855), Having friends who drink (AOR: 1.740, 95% CI: 0.918-3.300), and having a family member who drinks alcohol. All these categories are significantly (p<0.05) associated with alcohol use.

Conclusion

The effects of alcohol consumption and its risks of mental illness, chronic illness, and social problems in adulthood are not completely understood by school students. Alcoholism can be eradicated using educational, preventive, and motivating measures. Special attention should be given to young people and their coping mechanisms against alcohol use.

Evaluating longitudinal relationships between parental monitoring and substance use in a multi-year, intensive longitudinal study of 670 adolescent twins

Introduction

Parental monitoring is a key intervention target for adolescent substance use, however this practice is largely supported by causally uninformative cross-sectional or sparse-longitudinal observational research designs.

Methods

We therefore evaluated relationships between adolescent substance use (assessed weekly) and parental monitoring (assessed every two months) in 670 adolescent twins for two years. This allowed us to assess how individual-level parental monitoring and substance use trajectories were related and, via the twin design, to quantify genetic and environmental contributions to these relationships. Furthermore, we attempted to devise additional measures of parental monitoring by collecting quasi-continuous GPS locations and calculating a) time spent at home between midnight and 5am and b) time spent at school between 8am-3pm.

Results

ACE-decomposed latent growth models found alcohol and cannabis use increased with age while parental monitoring, time at home, and time at school decreased. Baseline alcohol and cannabis use were correlated (r = .65) and associated with baseline parental monitoring (r = -.24 to -.29) but not with baseline GPS measures (r = -.06 to -.16). Longitudinally, changes in substance use and parental monitoring were not significantly correlated. Geospatial measures were largely unrelated to parental monitoring, though changes in cannabis use and time at home were highly correlated (r = -.53 to -.90), with genetic correlations suggesting their relationship was substantially genetically mediated. Due to power constraints, ACE estimates and biometric correlations were imprecisely estimated. Most of the substance use and parental monitoring phenotypes were substantially heritable, but genetic correlations between them were not significantly different from 0.

Discussion

Overall, we found developmental changes in each phenotype, baseline correlations between substance use and parental monitoring, co-occurring changes and mutual genetic influences for time at home and cannabis use, and substantial genetic influences on many substance use and parental monitoring phenotypes. However, our geospatial variables were mostly unrelated to parental monitoring, suggesting they poorly measured this construct. Furthermore, though we did not detect evidence of genetic confounding, changes in parental monitoring and substance use were not significantly correlated, suggesting that, at least in community samples of mid-to-late adolescents, the two may not be causally related.

Lipidomic landscape of circulating extracellular vesicles isolated from adolescents exposed to ethanol intoxication: a sex difference study

BACKGROUND

Lipids represent essential components of extracellular vesicles (EVs), playing structural and regulatory functions during EV biogenesis, release, targeting, and cell uptake. Importantly, lipidic dysregulation has been linked to several disorders, including metabolic syndrome, inflammation, and neurological dysfunction. Our recent results demonstrated the involvement of plasma EV microRNAs as possible amplifiers and biomarkers of neuroinflammation and brain damage induced by ethanol intoxication during adolescence. Considering the possible role of plasma EV lipids as regulatory molecules and biomarkers, we evaluated how acute ethanol intoxication differentially affected the lipid composition of plasma EVs in male and female adolescents and explored the participation of the immune response.

METHODS

Plasma EVs were extracted from humans and wild-type (WT) and Toll-like receptor 4 deficient (TLR4-KO) mice. Preprocessing and exploratory analyses were conducted after the extraction of EV lipids and data acquisition by mass spectrometry. Comparisons between ethanol-intoxicated and control human female and male individuals and ethanol-treated and untreated WT and TLR4-KO female and male mice were used to analyze the differential abundance of lipids. Annotation of lipids into their corresponding classes and a lipid set enrichment analysis were carried out to evaluate biological functions.

RESULTS

We demonstrated, for the first time, that acute ethanol intoxication induced a higher enrichment of distinct plasma EV lipid species in human female adolescents than in males. We observed a higher content of the PA, LPC, unsaturated FA, and FAHFA lipid classes in females, whereas males showed enrichment in PI. These lipid classes participate in the formation, release, and uptake of EVs and the activation of the immune response. Moreover, we observed changes in EV lipid composition between ethanol-treated WT and TLR4-KO mice (e.g., enrichment of glycerophosphoinositols in ethanol-treated WT males), and the sex-based differences in lipid abundance are more notable in WT mice than in TLR4-KO mice. All data and results generated have been made openly available on a web-based platform ( http://bioinfo.cipf.es/sal ).

CONCLUSIONS

Our results suggest that binge ethanol drinking in human female adolescents leads to a higher content of plasma EV lipid species associated with EV biogenesis and the propagation of neuroinflammatory responses than in males. In addition, we discovered greater differences in lipid abundance between sexes in WT mice compared to TLR4-KO mice. Our findings also support the potential use of EV-enriched lipids as biomarkers of ethanol-induced neuroinflammation during adolescence.

Measures of self-reported identity associated with sex and gender: Relations with collegiate drinking

OBJECTIVE

Quantitative research has typically relied on categorical measures of sex assigned at birth (SAAB) and gender, with heterogeneous findings in terms of their associations with alcohol-related behavior. This investigation examined continuous indices of self-identification as an alternative to categorical operationalizations in alcohol research.

METHOD

Eight hundred ninety-three undergraduate students (74.6% cisgender women, 20.3% cisgender men, 3.9% nonbinary, and 1.2% transgender), recruited from the Midwest and Pacific Northwest of the United States, completed online measures of SAAB (male/female), gender (categorical), continuous indices of identification (femaleness, maleness, and bidirectional), and alcohol consumption (Cahalan Indices; Daily Drinking Questionnaire-Revised; Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test [AUDIT]).

RESULTS

Novel continuous measures of identification were associated with categorical indices of SAAB and gender as predicted. While none of the self-identification indices (continuous or categorical) predicted current drinking (consumption in the past 30 days), they evidenced relatively consistent, albeit small effects, across quantity-frequency of drinking and AUDIT scores for current drinkers. Higher scores on maleness and bidirectional indices of identification were associated with greater consumption, while greater endorsement of femaleness and being a cisgender woman (vs. a cisgender man) were related to less drinking.

CONCLUSIONS

Continuous self-reported identification items performed well when describing drinking behavior in college students. The inclusion of dimensional scales of identity broadens our ability to capture differing self-conceptualizations in research.

Prom, graduation and parties: Alcohol use and normative perceptions among high school seniors during specific events

BACKGROUND

Previous research has shown that a majority of adolescents in the United States initiate and drink alcohol prior to graduating high school and nearly twenty percent of high school seniors engage in heavy episodic drinking. Despite anecdotal evidence and media portrayals of alcohol use during high school events (e.g., prom), little is understood about alcohol use surrounding specific events that may be identified as "high-risk" events and addressed in specific interventions. Similarly, normative perceptions exert powerful influence on behaviors but little is understood about normative perceptions of alcohol use at high school events.

OBJECTIVES

The purpose of the present study was to understand whether high school alcohol use is associated with specific events by describing behaviors and normative perceptions.

METHODS

Participants were 386 U.S. college students age 18 to 19 (60.4 % female, mean age = 18.4) who provided retrospective accounts of their alcohol use surrounding senior year high school events (either before, which is relevant to pregaming addressed in this special issue, during, or after).

RESULTS

Most students did not drink surrounding high school events but nearly all reported that they perceived that the typical high school senior did. Those who did drink alcohol tended to drink heavily, particularly during prom. Alcohol use was associated with other high school events ranging from the beginning of senior year (e.g., Homecoming) though the end (e.g., graduation parties) CONCLUSIONS: Results indicate the importance of future research efforts tailoring intervention efforts around specific events and the applicability of personalized normative feedback approaches.

Alcohol and energy drinks: individual contribution of common ingredients on ethanol-induced behaviour

Since energy drinks (EDs) were sold to the general public as soft drinks and recreational beverages, mixing EDs with ethanol has grown in popularity, particularly among younger people. Given the research that links these drinks with higher risk behaviors and increased ethanol intake, ethanol combined with EDs (AmEDs) is a particularly worrying combination. EDs generally commonly include a variety of ingredients. Sugar, caffeine, taurine, and B-group vitamins are almost always present. Studies on the combined effect of ethanol and sugar and caffeine on ethanol-induced behaviors are extensive. Not so much in regards to taurine and vitamins. This review briefly summarises available information from research on the isolated compounds on EtOH-induced behaviors first, and secondly, the combination of AmEDs on EtOH effects. The conclusion is that additional research is needed to fully comprehend the characteristics and consequences of AmEDs on EtOH-induced behaviors.

Cannabis-Legalisierung in Deutschland

Zusammenfassung: Zielsetzung: Die deutsche Bundesregierung hat beschlossen, den nicht-medizinischen Cannabis-Gebrauch und -Vertrieb zu legalisieren, und Kernpunkte des vorgesehenen Regelwerks vorgelegt. Einige dieser Kernpunkte werden aus der Sicht internationaler Erfahrungen und wissenschaftlicher Evidenz zur Legalisierung – insbesondere mit Blick auf Massnahmen und Ziele öffentlicher Gesundheit – eingeschätzt und kommentiert. Methodik: Selektive Zusammenfassung und policy-analytische Anwendung wissenschaftlicher Evidenz. Ergebnisse: Ein erheblicher Anteil von Cannabis-bezogenen Gesundheitsproblemen hängt mit dem Konsum von Hochpotenz- (THC) Produkten zusammen; allerdings würden kategorische THC-Grenzwerte für legal verfügbares Cannabis diese im Gesamten wahrscheinlich nicht reduzieren sondern primär Hochrisiko-Konsumenten weiter in der Illegalität belassen. Die Mindestalter-Grenze von 18 Jahren für legales Cannabis macht primär politischen Sinn und repräsentiert nicht unbedingt optimalen Gesundheits- oder sozialen Schutz für junge Konsumenten; allerdings wird der Cannabis-Konsum bei Minderjährigen wahrscheinlich weiter hoch blieben. Eine substanz-übergreifende, gesundheits-orientierte Angleichung mit den Gesetzesregelungen für andere Substanzen (z. B. Alkohol) wäre sinnvoll. Das Fahren unter Cannabis-Einfluss ist relativ häufig, und kann zu Verletzungs- und Todesfällen, und damit erheblicher Gesundheitsbelastung führen; seine Kontrolle braucht gezielte Aufklärungs- und Abschreckungs-Maßnahmen. Cannabis-Legalisierung ist mit einschlägigen internationalen (z. B. UN) Konventionen generell schwierig zu vereinbaren, sollte aber dazu genutzt werden, diese grundsätzlich auf der Basis von Prinzipien des Gesundheitsschutzes zu erneuern. Schlussfolgerungen: Für die Cannabis-Legalisierung in Deutschland gibt es kein perfektes Regelwerk; einige Kern-Ziele werden nur über Kompromiss-Ansätze zu erreichen sein, die im Zweifelsfall angepasst werden müssen. Wenn implementiert, wird Deutschland wichtige Daten zur Cannabis-Legalisierung als Politik-Option bieten können, wozu ein systematisches und umfassendes Prozess- und Ergebnis-Monitoring durchgeführt werden muss.

Effects of an App-Based Intervention Program to Reduce Substance Use, Gambling, and Digital Media Use in Adolescents and Young Adults: A Multicenter, Cluster-Randomized Controlled Trial in Vocational Schools in Germany

Vocational students are a risk group for problematic substance use and addictive behaviors. The study aim was to evaluate the effects of an app-based intervention on tobacco, e-cigarettes, alcohol, and cannabis use as well as gambling and digital media-related behaviors in the vocational school setting. A total of 277 classes with 4591 students (mean age 19.2 years) were consecutively recruited and randomized into an intervention (IG) or waitlist control group (CG). Students from IG classes received access to an app, which encouraged a voluntary commitment to reduce or completely abstain from the use of a specific substance, gambling, or media-related habit for 2 weeks. Substance use, gambling, and digital media use were assessed before and after the intervention in both groups with a mean of 7.7 weeks between assessments. Multi-level logistic regression models were used to test group differences. Intention-to-treat-results indicated that students from IG classes had a significantly larger improvement on a general adverse health behavior measure compared to CG (OR = 1.24, p = 0.010). This difference was mainly due to a significantly higher reduction of students' social media use in the IG (OR = 1.31, p < 0.001). Results indicate that the app "Meine Zeit ohne" is feasible for the target group and seems to have a small but measurable impact on students' health behavior.

Adolescent brain maturation and the neuropathological effects of binge drinking: A critical review

Adolescence is a transitional stage marked by continued brain development. This period is accompanied by physical and neurochemical modifications in the shape and function of the hippocampus, prefrontal cortex, and other limbic system structures. Brain maturation during adolescence, which is typically governed by intrinsic factors, can be dramatically altered by environmental influences such as drugs and alcohol. Unlike many other addictive substances, binge drinking is very common and normative among teenagers and young adults. This repeated pattern of excessive alcohol consumption in adolescents has been shown to cause behavioral changes and neurocognitive impairments that include increased anxiety, risky decision-making, and learning deficits, which could lead to the development of alcohol use disorder (AUD). This manuscript highlights factors that lead to adolescent binge drinking, discusses maturational changes that occur in an adolescent's brain, and then evaluates the effect of adolescent alcohol consumption on brain structure, function, and neurocognitive abilities in both human studies and animal models. The impact of gender/sex and COVID-19 are briefly discussed. Understanding the factors that promote the onset of adolescent binge drinking and its undesirable consequences could serve as a catalyst for developing therapeutic agents that would decrease or eradicate the damaging effects of alcohol on an adolescent brain.

Recreational cannabis legalization has had limited effects on a wide range of adult psychiatric and psychosocial outcomes

BACKGROUND

The causal impacts of recreational cannabis legalization are not well understood due to the number of potential confounds. We sought to quantify possible causal effects of recreational cannabis legalization on substance use, substance use disorder, and psychosocial functioning, and whether vulnerable individuals are more susceptible to the effects of cannabis legalization than others.

METHODS

We used a longitudinal, co-twin control design in 4043 twins (N = 240 pairs discordant on residence), first assessed in adolescence and now age 24-49, currently residing in states with different cannabis policies (40% resided in a recreationally legal state). We tested the effect of legalization on outcomes of interest and whether legalization interacts with established vulnerability factors (age, sex, or externalizing psychopathology).

RESULTS

In the co-twin control design accounting for earlier cannabis frequency and alcohol use disorder (AUD) symptoms respectively, the twin living in a recreational state used cannabis on average more often (βw = 0.11, p = 1.3 × 10-3), and had fewer AUD symptoms (βw = -0.11, p = 6.7 × 10-3) than their co-twin living in an non-recreational state. Cannabis legalization was associated with no other adverse outcome in the co-twin design, including cannabis use disorder. No risk factor significantly interacted with legalization status to predict any outcome.

CONCLUSIONS

Recreational legalization was associated with increased cannabis use and decreased AUD symptoms but was not associated with other maladaptations. These effects were maintained within twin pairs discordant for residence. Moreover, vulnerabilities to cannabis use were not exacerbated by the legal cannabis environment. Future research may investigate causal links between cannabis consumption and outcomes.

Adolescent substance use and high school noncompletion: exploring the nature of the relationship using a discordant twin design

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Previous studies have demonstrated associations between substance use and reduced educational attainment; however, many were unable to account for potential confounding factors like genetics and the rearing environment. In the few studies that controlled for these factors, the substances assessed were limited to alcohol, cannabis, and tobacco. To address these limitations, we examined the relationship between adolescent use of seven kinds of substances, the number of additional substances used, and high school noncompletion within a large sample of Australian twins.

DESIGN

A series of two-level generalized mixed effects logistic regressions were conducted to examine associations between adolescent substance use and high school noncompletion.

SETTING

Australia.

PARTICIPANTS

A total of 9579 adult Australian twins from two cohorts of the Australian Twin Registry.

MEASUREMENTS

Assessments of high school completion, childhood major depression, conduct disorder symptoms, substance use initiation, demographics, and parental educational attainment using the Australian version of the Semi-Structured Assessment for the Genetics of Alcoholism.

FINDINGS

There were unique within-twin-pair effects of use of sedatives (odds ratio [OR] = 22.39 [95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.18-423.48]) and inhalants/solvents (OR = 10.46 [95% CI = 1.30-84.16]) on high school noncompletion. The number of substances used in adolescence was strongly associated with high school noncompletion across all discordant twin models (ORs from 1.50-2.32, Ps < 0.03).

CONCLUSIONS

In Australia, adolescent substance use appears to be associated with early school dropout, with the effects of any given substance largely because of the confounding factors of parental education, childhood conduct disorder symptoms, and use of other substances. Sedatives and inhalants/solvents have effects on high school noncompletion that cannot be explained by polysubstance use or familial factors.

Perception of Parental Attitudes and Self-Efficacy in Refusing Alcohol Drinking and Smoking by Spanish Adolescents: A Cross-Sectional Study

Adolescents are particularly vulnerable to initiation of the use of substances harmful to health, and its increase is cause for concern. The objective of this study was to analyze the relationship between self-efficacy in refusing alcohol and the attitude of adolescents toward drugs and their perception of their parents' attitude toward refusal. The study was carried out in 2019 in a sample of 1287 students from 11 public high schools in the province of Almería (Spain). Students were aged 14 to 18 in their 3rd and 4th year of compulsory secondary education. The Drinking Refusal Self-Efficacy Questionnaire-Revised Adolescent version (DRSEQ-RA), Attitudes Toward Taking Drugs-Basic BIP Scale and the Parents' attitudes Toward Drug Use were administered. The results showed that family relationships seem to have a direct impact on adolescent patterns in smoking and drinking alcohol. However, a favorable attitude toward drugs is a risk factor for drinking alcohol and smoking tobacco. The self-efficacy dimension also acts as a protective factor against the probability of using alcohol or tobacco. The conclusions emphasized that communication within the family core can increase or decrease the risk of adolescents using substances harmful to health.

Intersectional stigma subgroup differences in unhealthy drinking and disordered marijuana use among Black and Latino cisgender sexual minority young men

BACKGROUND

We investigated associations of intersectional stigma subgroups with alcohol and marijuana use among Black and Latino sexual minority young men. Subgroups included Minimal Stigma (low to no stigma), Select Social Stigma (occasional stigma in social relationships), Multiform Heterosexism (internalized and interpersonal heterosexism from family/friends), Multiform Racism (racism across diverse contexts), Compound Stigma (frequent, ubiquitous racism and heterosexism).

METHODS

Cohort of Black and Latino cisgender sexual minority young men (n = 414; baseline ages 16-25) surveyed semiannually 2016-2019. Generalized estimating equations integrated with latent class analysis modeled linear and quadratic age effects and association of stigma subgroups with past 6-month alcohol use, marijuana use, unhealthy drinking, and marijuana use disorder symptoms.

RESULTS

All past 6-month substance use peaked between ages 21-23 years old. Across all ages and relative to Minimal Stigma, odds of drinking were higher in every subgroup and highest in Compound Stigma (OR=2.72, 95% CI 1.17-6.35); unhealthy drinking was higher in every subgroup and highest in Multiform Heterosexism (β = 3.31, 95% CI 1.92-3.89); marijuana use disorder symptoms were higher in most subgroups and highest in Compound Stigma (β = 1.30, 95% CI 0.76-1.85). Marijuana use odds did not differ among groups.

CONCLUSION

By examining intersectional stigma subgroups, we identified subgroups for whom substance use was elevated during a development period when use tends to be highest. Young men experiencing stigma patterns characterized primarily by heterosexism or heterosexism together with racism may be especially at risk for developing unhealthy drinking behaviors and marijuana use disorder symptoms.

Real-time momentary mood as a predictor of college students' prescription drug misuse in daily life: Direct links and the moderating role of background mental health

The present study addressed calls for research to identify real-time predictors of prescription drug misuse (Schepis et al., 2020) by testing young adults' momentary reports of their negative mood and positive mood as predictors of event-level misuse in daily life. We implemented a 28-day ecological momentary assessment (EMA) procedure that collected individuals' mood and other contextual experiences in moments preceding prescription drug misuse. Consistent with models of problematic substance use as a means to reduce negativity (Khantzian, 1997), results from hierarchical generalized linear modeling (HGLM) indicated within-person links between higher than usual negative mood and greater likelihood of prescription misuse in daily life. Contrary to the hypothesis, misuse was also more likely when preceded by elevated positive mood. We found consistent support for the hypothesized between-person effects, with prescription misuse in daily life associated with higher average levels of negative mood, and lower average levels of positive mood, across the reporting period. We further predicted that individuals reporting greater levels of social anxiety, depression, and externalizing symptoms would evidence stronger links between their momentary negative mood and prescription misuse. Partial support for this moderation hypothesis was found, with the positive within-person link between negative mood and prescription misuse significantly stronger among individuals higher (vs. lower) on social anxiety and depression. Results provide support for intricate connections between young adults' momentary mood, mental health symptoms, and prescription drug misuse. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Trajectories of adolescent poly-substance use and their long-term social and economic outcomes for males from low-income backgrounds

Substance abuse is a significant public health concern that disproportionately burdens males and low-income communities. This study examined (1) longitudinal profiles of male adolescent poly-substance use and (2) their association with social and economic participation across early adulthood. Drawing on a cohort of males (n = 890) from low-income neighborhoods, we used group-based multi-trajectory modeling to identify profiles of poly-substance use (alcohol, tobacco, cannabis, illicit drugs) from age 13-17 years. Regression models were used to link substance use profiles to high school graduation, criminal convictions, personal and household earnings, welfare receipt and partnership from age 19-37 years, obtained from administrative records. Child IQ, family adversity and behavioral problems were adjusted for. Four poly-substance use profiles were identified: abstinent (n = 128, 14.4%), late-onset (n = 412, 46.5%), mid-onset (n = 249, 28.1%), and early-onset (n = 98, 11.1%). Relative to the late-onset (reference) group, participants in the early-onset profile were 3.0 times (95%CI = 1.68-5.53) more likely to have left school without a diploma, 2.7 times (95% CI = 1.56-4.68) more likely to have a criminal conviction by age 24 years, earned 10,185 USD less (95% CI =  - 15,225- - 5144) per year at age 33-37 years and had 15,790 USD lower (95% CI =  - 23,378- - 8218) household income at age 33-37 years, a 1.3 times (95%CI = 1.15-1.57) higher incidence of annual welfare receipt and a 24% (95% CI = 5-40) lower incidence of marriage/cohabitation from age 18-35 years. We show that adolescent-onset poly-substance use by age 13 is associated with poor social and economic outcomes. Delaying the onset of substance use and reducing exposure to additional substance classes has potential for high societal cost savings.

Pharmacotherapies for Adults With Alcohol Use Disorders: A Systematic Review and Network Meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

We aimed to determine medications' comparative efficacy and safety for adults with alcohol use disorders.

METHODS

We searched eleven electronic data sources for randomized clinical trials with at least 4 weeks of treatment reporting on alcohol consumption (total abstinence and reduced heavy drinking), dropouts, and dropouts due to adverse events. We conducted network meta-analyses using random-effects, frequentist models, and calculated summary rate ratios (RRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs).

RESULTS

We included 156 trials (N = 27,334). Nefazodone (RR = 2.11; 95% CI, 1.42-3.13), aripiprazole (RR = 1.97; 95% CI, 1.36-2.88), carbamazepine (RR = 1.85; 95% CI, 1.03-3.32), and nalmefene (RR = 1.17; 95% CI, 1.01-1.35) were associated with the most dropouts. Baclofen (RR = 0.83; 95% CI, 0.70-0.97) and pregabalin (RR = 0.63; 95% CI, 0.43-0.94) caused fewer dropouts than placebo. Nalmefene (RR = 3.26; 95% CI, 2.34-4.55), fluvoxamine (RR = 3.08; 95% CI, 1.59-5.94), and topiramate (RR=2.18; 95% CI, 1.36-3.51) caused more dropouts from adverse events over placebo. Gamma-hydroxy-butyrate (RR = 1.90; 95% CI, 1.03-3.53), baclofen (RR = 1.80; 95% CI, 1.39-2.34), disulfiram (RR = 1.71; 95% CI, 1.39-2.10), gabapentin (RR = 1.66; 95% CI, 1.04-2.67), acamprosate (RR = 1.33; 95% CI, 1.15-1.54), and oral naltrexone (RR = 1.15; 95% CI, 1.01-1.32) improved total abstinence over placebo (Fig. 3C). For reduced heavy drinking, disulfiram (RR = 0.19; 95% CI, 0.10-0.35), baclofen (RR = 0.72; 95% CI, 0.57-0.91), acamprosate (RR = 0.78; 95% CI, 0.70-0.86), and oral naltrexone (RR = 0.81; 95% CI, 0.73-0.90) were efficacious against placebo.

CONCLUSIONS

The current meta-analyses provide evidence that several medications for AUDs are effective and safe and encourage the expanded use of these medications in the clinical setting. Our review found that acamprosate (2-3 g/d), disulfiram (250-500 mg/d), baclofen (30 mg/d), and oral naltrexone (50 mg/d) had the best evidence for improving abstinence and heavy drinking for patients with AUD.

PROSPERO

CRD42020208946.

Solitary alcohol use in adolescence predicts alcohol problems in adulthood: A 17-year longitudinal study in a large national sample of US high school students

BACKGROUND

Identifying risk factors for alcohol use disorder (AUD) is important for public health. The social context of drinking-such as drinking alone-may be an independent and robust early risk marker for AUD symptoms later in life. We evaluated whether solitary alcohol use in adolescence (age 18) and young adulthood (age 23/24) was concurrently associated with binge drinking and prospectively predicted age 35 AUD symptoms, and whether associations differed by sex.

METHODS

Longitudinal data were from the Monitoring the Future study. Surveys were completed by adolescents in 12th grade at age 18 (1976-2002), young adults at age 23/24 (1981-2008), and adults at age 35 (1993-2019). Analyses included past 12-month alcohol users (n = 4464 for adolescent models; n = 4561 for young adult models). Multivariable regression analyses tested whether adolescent and young adult solitary alcohol use was associated concurrently with binge drinking frequency and prospectively with age 35 AUD symptoms.

RESULTS

Solitary alcohol use in adolescence and young adulthood was associated (a) concurrently with binge drinking and (b) prospectively with increased risk of age 35 AUD symptoms (even after controlling for earlier binge drinking, alcohol use frequency, and sociodemographic covariates). Adolescent solitary alcohol use was associated with age 35 AUD symptoms particularly among females; no interaction was observed between sex and young adult solitary alcohol use in predicting age 35 AUD symptoms.

CONCLUSIONS

Adolescent and young adult solitary alcohol use was associated with increased adult AUD symptoms above and beyond other risk factors; adolescent female solitary alcohol users were especially at risk.

Did the acute impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on drinking or nicotine use persist? Evidence from a cohort of emerging adults followed for up to nine years

OBJECTIVE

This study examined the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on drinking and nicotine use through June of 2021 in a community-based sample of young adults.

METHOD

Data were from 348 individuals (49% female) enrolled in a long-term longitudinal study with an accelerated longitudinal design: the National Consortium on Alcohol and Neurodevelopment in Adolescence (NCANDA) Study. Individuals completed pre-pandemic assessments biannually from 2016 to early 2020, then completed up to three web-based, during-pandemic surveys in June 2020, December 2020, and June 2021. Assessments when individuals were 18.8-22.4 years old (N = 1,458) were used to compare drinking and nicotine use pre-pandemic vs. at each of the three during-pandemic timepoints, adjusting for the age-related increases expected over time.

RESULTS

Compared to pre-pandemic, participants were less likely to report past-month drinking in June or December 2020, but there was an increase in drinking days among drinkers in June 2020. By June 2021, both the prevalence of past-month drinking and number of drinking days among drinks were similar to pre-pandemic levels. On average, there were no statistically significant differences between pre-pandemic and during-pandemic time points for binge drinking, typical drinking quantity, or nicotine use. Young adults who reported an adverse financial impact of the pandemic showed increased nicotine use while their peers showed stable or decreased nicotine use.

CONCLUSION

Initial effects of the pandemic on alcohol use faded by June 2021, and on average there was little effect of the pandemic on nicotine use.

Brain Morphology Predictors of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Cannabis Use in Adolescence: A Systematic Review

In the last decade, extensive research has emerged on the predictive value of brain morphology for substance use initiation and related problems during adolescence. This systematic review provides an overview of longitudinal studies on pre-existing brain variations and later initiation of alcohol, tobacco, and cannabis use (N = 18). Adolescent structural neuroimaging studies that started before substance use initiation suggest that a smaller anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) volume, thicker or smaller superior frontal gyrus, and larger nucleus accumbens (NAcc) volume are associated with future alcohol use. Also, both smaller and larger orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) volumes were associated with future cannabis and combined alcohol/cannabis use. Smaller amygdala volumes were related to future daily tobacco smoking. These findings could point to specific vulnerabilities for adolescent substance use, as these brain areas are involved in cognitive control (ACC), reward (NAcc), motivation (OFC), and emotional memory (amygdala). However, the reported findings were inconsistent in directionality and laterality, and the largest study on alcohol use predictors reported null findings. Therefore, large population-based longitudinal studies should investigate the robustness and mechanisms of these associations. We suggested future research directions regarding sample selection, timing of baseline and follow-up measurements, and a harmonization approach of study methods.

Assessing Alcohol Expectations in University Students: the APNE Scale

The increasing prevalence of alcohol consumption at early ages has led to major efforts to identify alcohol drinking habits within this highly vulnerable group, and individuals with hazardous patterns of alcohol consumption. The aim of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Alcohol Positive and Negative Expectations Scale (APNE; a new screening tool developed to identify expectations toward alcohol), and to examine the patterns of alcohol drinking in young adults. The sample included n = 1309 participants (college students) with age range 20 to 25 years. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) performed through Generalized Structural Equation Models (GSEM) verified the structure of the APNE, correlational models evaluated convergent-discriminant validity, and logistic regression assessed the discriminative ability to identify harmful drinking. The bifactor structure for the APNE was confirmed (positive and negative expectations toward alcohol drinking), with adequate goodness-of-fit (RMSEA = 0.052, CFI = 0.936, TLI = 0.914, and SRMR = 0.075). Multi-group modeling showed invariance by sex (p = .543) and age (p = .395) for the measurement coefficients. High correlations with external measures of alcohol use/abuse and discriminant capacity to identify harmful drinking were obtained. Compared to men, women reported higher mean scores in the negative expectations factor (p = .003). Polynomial linear trends showed that the likelihood of positive expectations toward alcohol decreased with age, while negative expectations increased. The APNE is a brief, reliable, valid, and accurate tool to assess positive and negative expectations toward alcohol consumption in college students. Tools like the APNE can support policymakers to make informed decisions about the implementation of prevention and treatment programs targeted at this segment of the population, the development of personalized alcohol programs, and the reappraisal of public campaigns.

2022 Prevention of chronic non-communicable diseases in Of the Russian Federation. National guidelines

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Behavioral alterations induced by intermittent ethanol intake and noise exposure in adolescent rats

Alcohol intake and exposure to noise are common activities of human adolescents performed in entertainment contexts worldwide that can induce behavioral disturbances. Therefore, the aim of the present work was to investigate in an experimental model of adolescent animals whether noise exposure and intermittent ethanol intake, when present individually or sequentially, might be able to modify different behaviors. Adolescent Wistar rats of both sexes were subjected to voluntary intermittent ethanol intake for 1 week followed by exposure to noise for 2 h and tested in a battery of behavioral tasks. Data show that males exposed to noise experienced a deficit in associative memory (AM), increase in anxiety-like behaviors (ALB) and altered reaction to novelty (RN) when compared with sham animals, whereas females also showed an increase in risk assessment behaviors (RAB) and a decrease in exploratory activity (EA). In contrast, ethanol intake induced an increase in RAB and RN in males and females, whereas females also showed a deficit in AM and EA as well as an increase in ALB. When ethanol was ingested before noise exposure, most parameters were counteracted both in male and females, but differed among sexes. In consequence, it could be hypothesized that an environmental acute stressor like noise might trigger a behavioral counteracting induced by a previous repeated exposure to a chemical agent such as ethanol, leading to a compensation of a non-adaptive behavior and reaching a better adjustment to the environment.

Large-scale brain network activation during emotional inhibitory control: Associations with alcohol misuse in college freshmen

BACKGROUND

The transition to college is associated with increased risk of alcohol misuse and a consequent increase in negative, alcohol-related social and health impacts. Traits associated with ongoing brain maturation during this period, including impulsivity in emotional contexts, could contribute to risky alcohol use.

METHODS

This functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study examined brain network activation strength during an emotional inhibitory control task (Go-NoGo), which required participants to ignore background images with negative or neutral emotional valence during performance. Participants were 60 college freshmen (aged 18-20 years, 33 women). Survey measures, completed at baseline and one-year follow-up (follow-up n = 52, 29 women), assessed alcohol misuse alcohol use disorders identification test (AUDIT), alcohol/substance use counseling center assessment of psychological symptoms (C-CAPS), and negative consequences of alcohol use young adult alcohol consequences questionnaire (YAACQ). Measures were examined relative to network activation strength, on the Negative NoGo > Neutral NoGo contrast, of four large-scale brain networks implicated in top-down regulation of cognition and attention: right and left lateral frontoparietal networks (rL-FPN; lL-FPN), dorsal attention network (DAN), and salience network (SN).

RESULTS

Activation strength of DAN was negatively associated with scores on the AUDIT (p = 0.013) and YAACQ (p = 0.004) at baseline, and with C-CAPS score at baseline and follow-up (p = 0.002; p = 0.005), and positively associated with accuracy on NoGo trials with negative backgrounds (p = 0.014). Activation strength of rL-FPN was positively associated with C-CAPS score at follow-up (p = 0.003). SN activation strength was negatively associated with accuracy on NoGo trials with negative (p < 0.001) and neutral (p = 0.002) backgrounds and with the accuracy difference between negative versus neutral NoGo trials (p = 0.003).

CONCLUSION

These findings suggest that less engagement of large-scale brain circuitry that supports top-down attentional control, specifically during negative emotions, is associated with more problematic drinking in emerging adults who attend college. This pattern of network activation may serve as a risk marker for ongoing self-regulation deficits during negative emotion that could increase risk of problematic alcohol use and negative impacts of drinking.

Early life stress and substance use disorders: The critical role of adolescent substance use

Early life stress (ELS) is a well-established risk factor for many psychiatric and medical disorders, including substance use disorders (SUDs). The relationship between ELS and SUDs is complex and there are likely multiple pathways from ELS to adverse substance use outcomes. The association between ELS and substance use emerges in adolescence. Adolescence is a critical period in development during which substance exposure markedly increases risk for SUDs. Therefore, this review focuses on the literature supporting the hypothesis that ELS increases risk for the development of SUDs through its influence on adolescent substance use. We discuss studies substantiating the role of ELS in adolescent substance use and explore how internalizing and externalizing psychopathology may be antecedents of substance use in adolescence. We examine clinical work suggesting ELS sculpts the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) Axis and developing brain-particularly subcortical brain regions that underlie stress response, mesocorticolimbic brain systems associated with reward sensitivity, and prefrontal regions that underlie executive control-in a way that increases risk for adolescent substance use and SUDs. We further explore how substance use during adolescence alters structure and function of these same systems, and how brain changes following ELS and adolescent substance use may independently, additively, or interactively contribute to risk for addiction. We conclude by discussing how the current literature can inform interventions aimed at reducing risk for SUDs in individuals with a history of ELS.

Youths' Perceptions Of The Relation Between Alcohol Consumption And Risky Sexual Behaviour in the Western Cape, South Africa: A Qualitative Study

The purpose of this study is to explore the factors that youth identify as contributing to alcohol consumption, and more specifically its relation to risky sexual behaviour among youth. We employed an exploratory qualitative method using focus group discussions with 34 young people between the ages of 18-25-years-old in low socio-economic status communities in the Western Cape province of South Africa. Data were analyzed thematically utilizing Braun and Clarke's (2006) six-step thematic analysis process. We identified two thematic domains pertaining to alcohol consumption and risky sexual behaviour, namely individual and social factors, each comprising three themes. The individual factors thematic domain comprises intrapersonal influences, employment and educational attainment; while the social factors thematic domain includes interpersonal influences, social influences, and hope for the future. Youth living in low socio-economic status communities were thought to be at greater risk of alcohol misuse and subsequent risky behaviour, given the political and social history of marginalisation, systematic oppression, and social inequality. To address alcohol use and risky sexual behavior among youth, we recommend interventions with adolescents, parents or guardians, and the community. More specifically, interventions aimed at adolescents should focus on the transition to young adulthood. Interventions with parents should focus on their role in modelling and potentially regulating alcohol consumption. Finally, community interventions should centre on drinking behaviors, levels of drinking, what constitutes harmful drinking, and how to identify when treatment and recovery support is likely to be required.

Preliminary Effectiveness of a Remotely Monitored Blood Alcohol Concentration Device as Treatment Modality: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial

Background

Alcohol use disorder is a chronic disorder with a high likelihood of relapse. The consistent monitoring of blood alcohol concentration through breathalyzers is critical to identifying relapse or misuse. Smartphone apps as a replacement of or in conjunction with breathalyzers have shown limited effectiveness. Yet, there has been little research that has effectively utilized wireless or Wi-Fi–enabled breathalyzers that can accurately, securely, and reliably measure blood alcohol concentration.

Objective

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of a wireless blood alcohol concentration device in collaboration with long-term treatment on dropout rates, psychological distress, treatment motivation, quality of life, and need for higher levels of follow-up care for patients with alcohol use disorder.

Methods

The randomized clinical trial will include two arms, access to the wireless breathalyzer versus no access to the breathalyzer, while both groups have access to treatment. Evaluation will last 3 months with a 6-week follow-up, during which each participant will be interviewed at admission, 1 month in, 2 months in, 3 months in, and follow-up. Individuals will be recruited online through a secure telehealth meeting invitation. Outcomes will focus on the impact of the wireless breathalyzer within the alcohol use disorder population, and the combined effect on psychological distress, treatment motivation, and quality of life. In addition, we intend to investigate the impact of the breathalyzer on dropout rates and participants’ need for higher levels of follow-up care and treatment.

Results

The recruitment of this study started in July 2020 and will run until 2022.

Conclusions

This information will be important to develop cost-effective treatments for alcohol dependence. Ongoing monitoring allows treatment providers to take an individualized disease management approach and facilitates timely intervention by the treatment provider.

Trial Registration

ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04380116; http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04380116

International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)

DERR1-10.2196/30186

Acute alcohol intoxication across different age groups in 2014-2018: Prehospital care and biochemical correlates at a large University Hospital in southern Italy

BACKGROUND

Risky alcohol consumption can occur from a young age and affects people of all age groups, sometimes requiring the intervention of the emergency medical services.

OBJECTIVES

Determining the timing and characteristics of emergency calls (to the "118" emergency number) relating to subjects in all age groups, in which alcohol was a contributing factor, along with the biochemical correlates, in a great metropolitan area. On the basis of these, future interventions would target specific training for nurses and paramedics working in emergency medical services.

METHOD

An observational single-centre retrospective study carried out from 1 January 2014 to 31 December 2018 involving patients requiring emergency care and attending the Emergency Department of an University Hospital.

RESULTS

Out of a total of 47,252 emergency calls, 2.22% were for alcohol-related conditions and mainly involved male patients (78.4%). A high incidence of alcoholic coma was found in patients aged 11 to 17 years. Emergency medical assistance was required mainly at night on weekdays by patients aged 11-17, 25-44 years and during the weekend and on weekdays by patients aged 18-24 years. A blood alcohol concentration higher than 50 mg/dL was found in more than 67% of patients aged 11-17 and 18-24 years at weekends.

CONCLUSIONS

The most alarming finding from our data is that, despite prevention policies, young people requiring emergency medical assistance showed similar alcohol levels as adults and a high incidence of alcoholic coma.

Alcohol use in emerging adults associated with lower rich-club connectivity and greater connectome network disorganization

BACKGROUND

Emerging adulthood is a critical neurodevelopmental stage, with alcohol use during this period consistently associated with brain abnormalities and damage in anatomical structure and white matter integrity. However, it is less clear how alcohol use is associated with the brain's structural organization (i.e., white matter connections between anatomical regions). Recent connectome research has focused on rich-club regions, a collection of highly-interconnected hubs that are critical in brain communication and global network organization and disproportionately vulnerable to insults.

METHODS

For the first time, we examined alcohol use associations with structural rich-club and connectome organization in emerging adults (N = 66).

RESULTS

Greater lifetime drinks and current monthly drinks were significantly associated with lower rich-club organization (r_s =-0.38, ps < 0.003) and lower rich-club connectivity (r_s <-0.34, ps < 0.007). Additionally, rich-club connectivity was significantly more negatively correlated with alcohol use than connectivity among non-rich-club regions (ps < 0.035). Examining overall structural organization, greater lifetime drinks and current monthly drinks were significantly associated with lower network density (i.e., lower network resilience; r_s <-0.36, ps = 0.004). Additionally, greater lifetime drinks and current monthly drinks were significantly associated with higher network segregation (i.e., network's tendency to divide into subnetworks; r_s >0.33, ps<0.008). Alcohol use was not significantly associated with network integration (i.e., network's efficiency in combining information across the brain; ps > 0.064).

CONCLUSIONS

Results provide novel evidence that alcohol use is associated with decreased rich-club connectivity and structural network disorganization. Given that both are critical in global brain communication, these results highlight the importance of examining alcohol use and brain relationships in emerging adulthood.

Gender-Sexuality Alliances as a moderator of the association between victimization, depressive symptoms, and drinking behavior among LGBTQ+ youth

BACKGROUND

Victimization and depression are major stressors underlying drinking behavior among LGBTQ+ youth. There remains limited attention to setting-level factors that buffer their effects. Gender-Sexuality Alliances (GSAs) are school clubs that could promote the health of LGBTQ+ youth. We consider whether their presence in schools moderates associations between victimization, depressive symptoms, and recent alcohol use and heavy episodic drinking.

METHODS

LGBTQ+ youth (n = 5776) ages 13-17 in all 50 U.S. states with any prior history of alcohol use reported past 30-day alcohol use and heavy episodic drinking, victimization, depressive symptoms, and covariates including recent mental health counseling, perceived school safety, and demographics. Logistic regression models predicted youth's likelihood of any recent drinking and any heavy episodic drinking, with attention to GSA × victimization and GSA × depressive symptoms interaction effects.

FINDINGS

GSA presence moderated the extent to which victimization and depressive symptoms were associated with greater odds of recent heavy episodic drinking. GSA presence did not moderate these associations for lower thresholds of drinking (i.e., any drinking).

CONCLUSION

For LGBTQ+ youth with any lifetime history of alcohol use, GSAs could protect against heavy alcohol use, particularly when they face victimization and depression. GSAs may provide them with social-emotional support or educate school health professionals on ways to support LGBTQ+ youth facing victimization or mental health concerns. GSAs may not protect against all drinking behavior because youth may view some levels as normative. Our findings begin to suggest for whom GSA presence could be most protective.

Suicidal behaviors among Latina adolescents: An ecodevelopmental approach and narrative review

INTRODUCTION

For the past several decades, Latina adolescents have consistently shown high rates of suicidal behaviors (i.e., suicidal ideation, planning, and attempts), higher than Latino adolescents and adolescents of most other ethnic groups. Yet, progress toward establishing evidence-based intervention efforts to address this urgent public health issue has been slow. The purpose of this narrative review is to summarize empirical findings on etiological factors associated with Latina adolescent suicidal behaviors using an ecodevelopmental, gender-specific framework that contextualizes Latina adolescent development.

METHODS

To be included, peer reviewed empirical manuscripts had to focus on suicidal behaviors (i.e., suicide attempts, suicide plan, and/or suicidal ideation) of adolescents (ages 11-19 or in grades 7-12) who self-identified as either Latina or Hispanic and a girl in the United States.

RESULTS

A total of 19 studies met review criteria and focused on microsystemic and intrapersonal predictors. Microsystemic predictors included family (i.e., family-adolescent discrepancies in acculturation, family functioning, family-daughter interactions), peer (i.e., victimization, friendships), and school (i.e., functioning, achievement) factors, while intrapersonal predictors were emotional vulnerability, psychosocial functioning, and substance use.

CONCLUSIONS

Family-related phenomena were the most widely studied. Research on school and peer microsystems was comparatively sparse, and several promising intrapersonal development factors have been underexplored. A notable limitation of existing studies is that samples consisted primarily of U.S.-born adolescents living in urban areas. Additional research is needed to characterize factors on other ecodevelopmental levels, identify resilience processes, and examine within-group diversity among Latina adolescents. Implications for intervention and future directions are discussed.

Psychosocial predictors of substance use in adolescents and young adults: Longitudinal risk and protective factors

Many psychosocial factors have been implicated in the onset and escalation of substance use in adolescence and young adulthood. Typically, each factor explains a small amount of the variance in substance use outcomes, and effects are typically applied across a broad range of ages or computed from cross-sectional data. The current study evaluated the association of factors including social influence (e.g., peer substance use), cognitive features (e.g., alcohol expectancies), and personality and emotional characteristics (e.g., impulsivity and typical responses to stress) in substance use throughout adolescence and emerging adulthood (ages 13-25; N = 798). Mixed-effects models tailored for the accelerated longitudinal design employed in this study were constructed with psychosocial and developmental factors predicting alcohol and cannabis use. As most participants in the sample exhibited little or no substance use at baseline by design, we excluded baseline assessments and examined data from follow-up years 1, 2, 3, and 4. Interactions between age cohort, change in age, and psychosocial predictors of substance use revealed differing associations over the developmental window for alcohol and cannabis use. For example, positive alcohol expectancies and sensation seeking were most strongly associated with greater drinking after age 18, whereas sensation seeking was associated with increased cannabis use as early as age 15. Higher emotion regulation skills led to less cannabis use in younger ages (i.e., shallower slopes below age 17), but this protective effect diminished after age 17. Results highlight developmentally important factors that differentially contribute to substance use in adolescence and young adulthood. We also demonstrate the importance of developmentally sensitive analyses that maximize the value of data from accelerated longitudinal designs.

Patterns of Violence Victimization and Perpetration Among Adolescents Using Latent Class Analysis

Research has identified interpersonal violence (a broad term that includes stalking, harassment, sexual assault, and physical dating violence) as a major problem among adolescents. Research suggests that there are different patterns, or classes, of interpersonal violence victimization and perpetration, but little of this work has focused on adolescents. In the current study, we conducted latent class analysis using a sample of 2,921 adolescent girls and boys in high school from northern New England to assess varying patterns of interpersonal violence victimization and perpetration over the past 2 months, specifically stalking, harassment, sexual assault, and dating violence. Four classes of violence victimization and perpetration were identified: (a) No Victimization or Perpetration class (n = 1,898, 65.0%), (b) Low Victimization and Perpetration class (n = 343, 11.7%), (c) Harassment Victimization Only class (n = 560, 19.2%), and (d) High Victimization and Low Perpetration class (n = 120, 4.1%). Several differences in classes emerged as a function of demographic and behavioral health variables. For example, the High Victimization and Low Perpetration class had the highest proportion of girls and youth with sexual minority status. Furthermore, youth in the High Victimization and Low Perpetration class also had a significantly higher proportion of class members endorsing depressed mood and engagement in binge drinking than the youth in other classes. These findings demonstrate the heterogeneity in patterns of interpersonal violence, which future research should seek to better understand in terms of etiology, outcomes, and best practices for prevention and intervention.

Alcohol consumption among tertiary students in the Hohoe municipality, Ghana: analysis of prevalence, effects, and associated factors from a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

Alcohol consumption constitutes a major public health problem as it has negative consequences on the health, social, psychological, and economic outcomes of individuals. Tertiary education presents students with unique challenges and some students resort to the use of alcohol in dealing with their problems. This study, therefore, sought to determine alcohol use, its effects, and associated factors among tertiary students in the Hohoe Municipaility of Ghana.

METHODS

An institutional-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 418 tertiary students in the Hohoe Municipality of Ghana using a two-stage sampling technique. Data were collected using structured questionnaires. A binary logistic regression modelling was used to determine the strength of the association between alcohol consumption and the explanatory variables. The level of significance was set at p < 0.05. Stata version 16.0 was used to perform the analysis.

RESULTS

The lifetime prevalence of alcohol consumption was 39.5%. Out of them, 49.1% were still using alcohol, translating to an overall prevalence of 19.4% among the tertiary students. Self-reported perceived effects attributed to alcohol consumption were loss of valuable items (60.6%), excessive vomiting (53.9%), stomach pains/upset (46.1%), accident (40.0%), unprotected sex (35.1%), risk of liver infection (16.4%), depressive feelings (27.3%), diarrhoea (24.2%), debt (15.2%), and petty theft (22.4%). In terms of factors associated with alcohol consumption, students aged 26 years and above were more likely to have consumed alcohol [AOR = 4.4, 95%CI = 1.74, 11.14] than those in 16-20 years group. Muslim students had lower odds of alcohol consumption compared to Christians [AOR = 0.1, 95% CI = 0.02, 0.31]. It was also found that students who had peer influence [AOR = 3.7, 95%CI = 2.31, 5.82] and those who had academic adjustment problems [AOR = 3.6, 95% CI = 2.01, 6.46] were more likely to consume alcohol.

CONCLUSION

Lifetime prevalence of alcohol consumption is high among tertiary students in the Hohoe Municipality of Ghana, with several physical, psychosocial and economic consequences. Alcohol-related education should be intensified in tertiary institutions and counseling units should be equipped with relevant assessment tools to assess and help students who are at risk and those who are already consuming alcohol.

Binge Drinking: The Top 100 Cited Papers

We conducted a review to analyze the 100 most-cited studies on binge drinking (BD) in the Web of Science (WoS) database to determine their current status and the aspects that require further attention. We carried out a retrospective bibliometric analysis in January 2021. The year of publication, authors, design, subject, journal, institution and lead author’s country, as well as the definition of BD, were extracted from the articles. The data on the country, year, thematic category of the journals and their rank were obtained from the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI) Journal Citation Reports 2020. The number of citations was collected from the WoS, and the h index was collected from the Scopus database. The citation density and Bradford’s law were calculated. The majority of the articles were empirical quantitative studies with a cross-sectional design published between 1992 and 2013 in 49 journals. There were 306 authors, mostly English-speaking and from the USA. The definitions used to describe BD are not homogeneous. The most-cited topics were the analysis of consequences, determinants and epidemiology. There is a need to unify the definitions of BD and base them on scientific evidence. The multidisciplinary nature of BD is not well reflected in each of the thematic areas discussed in this work.

The Associations of Polygenic Scores for Risky Behaviors and Parenting Behaviors with Adolescent Externalizing Problems

The current study focused on longitudinal effects of genetics and parental behaviors and their interplay on externalizing behaviors in a panel study following individuals from adolescence to young adulthood. The nationally representative sample of Add Health participants of European ancestry included N = 4142 individuals, measured on three occasions. Parenting was operationalized as experiences with child maltreatment and maternal closeness. Externalizing problems were operationalized as alcohol use, cannabis use, and antisocial behaviors. Genetic effects were operationalized as a polygenic score (PGS) of risky behaviors. The results showed significant effects for child maltreatment, maternal closeness, and PGS, above and beyond other factors and previous levels of externalizing behaviors. Furthermore, maternal closeness was found to negatively correlate with PGS. No significant interaction effects of parenting and PGS were found. The results underscore the joint independent effects of parenting and genetics on the change in externalizing behaviors from adolescence to young adulthood.

Affective factors explaining the association between depressive functioning and alcohol outcomes among college students

Rates of co-occurring depression and alcohol use are higher among college students than in the general population. Further research is needed to illuminate how the mechanisms with which individuals process negative emotions may clarify the link between depressive symptoms and drinking. Objective: To assess how three potential mediators representing affective functioning (ie, need for affect, distress tolerance, emotion regulation) explain the relationship between depressive symptoms and alcohol use (ie, quantity and problems). Participants: The sample consisted of 227 college student heavy drinkers. Methods: Participants completed computerized self-report surveys in Fall 2016. Results: Path analyses revealed need for affect mediated the association between depressive symptoms and alcohol quantity, while emotion regulation mediated the relationship between depressive symptoms and alcohol-related problems. Conclusions: Findings highlight the importance of various affective functioning mechanisms to the depressive symptom-drinking link. Future research could target these mechanisms in college interventions for co-occurring mood symptoms and alcohol use.