Reasons for non-participation in a parental program concerning underage drinking: a mixed-method study

Background  

Alcohol consumption among adolescents is a serious public health concern. Research has shown that prevention programs targeting parents can help prevent underage drinking. The problem is that parental participation in these kinds of interventions is generally low. Therefore, the aim of the present study is to examine non-participation in a parental support program aiming to prevent underage alcohol drinking. The Health Belief Model has been used as a tool for the analysis.     

Alcohol consumption and binge drinking in adolescents: comparison of different migration backgrounds and rural vs. urban residence - a representative study

Background  

Binge drinking is a constant problem behavior in adolescents across Europe. Epidemiological investigations have been reported. However, epidemiological data on alcohol consumption of adolescents with different migration backgrounds are rare. Furthermore representative data on rural-urban comparison concerning alcohol consumption and binge drinking are lacking. The aims of the study are the investigation of alcohol consumption patterns with respect to a) urban-rural differences and b) differences according to migration background.     

Targeting young drinkers online: the effectiveness of a web-based brief alcohol intervention in reducing heavy drinking among college students: study protocol of a two-arm parallel group randomized controlled trial

Background  

The prevalence of heavy drinking among college students and its associated health related consequences highlights an urgent need for alcohol prevention programs targeting 18 to 24 year olds. Nevertheless, current alcohol prevention programs in the Netherlands pay surprisingly little attention to the drinking patterns of this specific age group. The study described in this protocol will test the effectiveness of a web-based brief alcohol intervention that is aimed at reducing alcohol use among heavy drinking college students aged 18 to 24 years old.     

The sociodemographic patterning of drinking and binge drinking in Estonia,Latvia, Lithuania and Finland, 1994–2002

Background  

Despite the relatively low recorded alcohol consumption level, the Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania) and neighbouring Finland suffer from similar harmful consequences related to the use of alcoholic beverages, including socio-economic inequalities in alcohol related mortality. Comparative evidence is needed to understand harmful drinking patterns and to implement preventive alcohol policies also in the Baltic countries. This study compared heavy and binge drinking by sex, age, education, urbanisation and marital status in the Baltic countries and Finland.     

Alcohol policy enforcement and changes in student drinking rates in a statewide public college system: a follow-up study

Background  

Heavy alcohol use among U.S. college students is a major contributor to young adult morbidity and mortality. The aim of this study was to examine whether college alcohol policy enforcement levels predict changes in student drinking and related behaviors in a state system of public colleges and universities, following a system-wide change to a stricter policy.     

Association of life course socioeconomic disadvantage with future problem drinking and heavy drinking: gender differentials in the west of Scotland

Objective  

To examine gender differentials in the association between life course socioeconomic disadvantage and the risk of exceeding internationally recognised weekly and daily guidelines for ‘sensible’ alcohol consumption and problem drinking.     

Teenage drinking, alcohol availability and pricing: a cross-sectional study of risk and protective factors for alcohol-related harms in school children

Background  

There is a lack of empirical analyses examining how alcohol consumption patterns in children relate to harms. Such intelligence is required to inform parents, children and policy relating to the provision and use of alcohol during childhood. Here, we examine drinking habits and associated harms in 15-16 year olds and explore how this can inform public health advice on child drinking.     

A cross-sectional survey of compliance with national guidance for alcohol consumption by children: measuring risk factors,protective factors and social norms for excessive and unsupervised drinking

Background  

The Chief Medical Officer for England has developed the first guidance in England and some of the first internationally on alcohol consumption by children. Using the most recent iteration of a large biennial survey of schoolchildren we measure the extent to which young people's drinking fell within the guidelines just prior to their introduction and the characteristics of individuals whose drinking does not; how alcohol related harms relate to compliance; and risk factors associated with behaving outside of the guidance.     

Differential relationships of family drinking with alcohol expectancy among urban school children

Background  

Positive alcohol outcome expectancy has consistently been linked with problematic drinking, but there is little population-based evidence on its role on early stages of drinking in childhood. The present study seeks to understand the extent to which drinking of family members is differentially associated with the endorsement of alcohol expectancy in late childhood.     

Socio-demographic correlates of six indicators of alcohol consumption: survey findings of students across seven universities in England,Wales and Northern Ireland

Background

This study assessed the prevalence of six alcohol consumption indicators in a sample of university students. We also examined whether students’ sociodemographic and educational characteristics were associated with any of the six alcohol consumption indicators; and whether associations between students’ sociodemographic and educational characteristics and the six alcohol consumption indicators differed by gender.

Methods

A cross-sectional study of 3706 students enrolled at 7 universities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. A self-administered questionnaire assessed six alcohol consumption measures: length of time of last (most recent) drinking occasion; amount consumed during last drinking occasion; frequency of alcohol consumption; heavy episodic drinking (≥ 5 drinks in a row); problem drinking; and possible alcohol dependence as measured by CAGE. The questionnaire also collected information on seven relevant student sociodemographic characteristics (age, gender, academic year of study, current living circumstances - accommodation with parents, whether student was in intimate relationship, socioeconomic status of parents - parental education, income sufficiency) and two academic achievement variables (importance of achieving good grades at university, and one’s academic performance in comparison with one’s peers).

Results

The majority of students (65% of females, 76% of males) reported heavy episodic drinking at least once within the last 2 weeks, and problem drinking was prevalent in 20% of females and 29% of males. Factors consistently positively associated with all six indicators of alcohol consumption were male gender and perceived insufficient income. Other factors such as living away from home, being in 1^st or 2^nd year of studies, having no intimate partner, and lower academic achievement were associated with some, but not all indicators of alcohol consumption.

Conclusions

The high level of alcohol consumption calls for regular/periodic monitoring of student use of alcohol, and for urgent preventive actions and intervention programmes at the universities in the UK.     

Improvements in readiness to change and drinking in primary care patients with unhealthy alcohol use: a prospective study

Background  

The course of alcohol consumption and cognitive dimensions of behavior change (readiness to change, importance of changing and confidence in ability to change) in primary care patients are not well described. The objective of the study was to determine changes in readiness, importance and confidence after a primary care visit, and 6-month improvements in both drinking and cognitive dimensions of behavior change, in patients with unhealthy alcohol use.     

Social cost of heavy drinking and alcohol dependence in high-income countries

Objective  

A comprehensive review of cost drivers associated with alcohol abuse, heavy drinking, and alcohol dependence for high-income countries was conducted.     

The effect of alcohol advertising, marketing and portrayal on drinking behaviour in young people: systematic review of prospective cohort studies

Background  

The effect of alcohol portrayals and advertising on the drinking behaviour of young people is a matter of much debate. We evaluated the relationship between exposure to alcohol advertising, marketing and portrayal on subsequent drinking behaviour in young people by systematic review of cohort (longitudinal) studies.     

Physical and social availability of alcohol for young enlisted naval personnel in and around home port

Background  

Heavy alcohol consumption rates are higher in the young adult military enlisted population than among civilians of the same age. The literature on alcohol availability, both generally and specifically with respect to work-related drinking, establishes clear links between ease of access, alcohol consumption rates and alcohol-related problems.     

The effects of merit-based financial aid on drinking in college

We study the effect of state-level merit aid programs (such as Georgia's HOPE scholarship) on alcohol consumption among college students. Such programs have the potential to affect drinking through a combination of channels – such as raising students’ disposable income and increasing the incentive to maintain a high GPA – that could theoretically raise or lower alcohol use. We find that the presence of a merit-aid program in one's state generally leads to an overall increase in (heavy) drinking. This effect is concentrated among men, students with lower parental education, older students, and students with high college GPA's. Our findings are robust to several alternative empirical specifications including event-study analyses by year of program adoption. Furthermore, no difference in high-school drinking is observed for students attending college in states with merit-aid programs.     

Volume et profil de consommation d’alcool des élèves et des camarades scolaires comme prédicteurs de l’agression et de la victimisation: une analyse multiniveaux auprès d’adolescents suisses

Volume and profile of alcohol consumption among students and classmates as predictors of aggression and victimization: a multilevel analysis among Swiss adolescents

Objective:  

To test the effects of the volume of alcohol consumption and drinking patterns on alcohol-related aggression and victimization, both at the individual and class levels.     

Heavy drinking and contextual risk factors among adults in South Africa: findings from the International Alcohol Control study

Background

There is limited information about the potential individual-level and contextual drivers of heavy drinking in South Africa. This study aimed to identify risk factors for heavy drinking in Tshwane, South Africa.

Methods

A household survey using a multi-stage stratified cluster random sampling design. Complete consumption and income data were available on 713 adults. Heavy drinking was defined as consuming ≥120?ml (96?g) of absolute alcohol (AA) for men and?≥?90?ml (72?g) AA for women at any location at least monthly.

Results

53% of the sample were heavy drinkers. Bivariate analyses revealed that heavy drinking differed by marital status, primary drinking location, and container size. Using simple logistic regression, only cider consumption was found to lower the odds of heavy drinking. Persons who primarily drank in someone else’s home, nightclubs, and sports clubs had increased odds of heavy drinking. Using multiple logistic regression and adjusting for marital status and primary container size, single persons were found to have substantially higher odds of heavy drinking. Persons who drank their primary beverage from above average-sized containers at their primary location had 7.9 times the odds of heavy drinking as compared to persons who drank from average-sized containers. Some significant associations between heavy drinking and age, race, and income were found for certain beverages.

Conclusion

Rates of heavy drinking were higher than expected giving impetus to various alcohol policy reforms under consideration in South Africa. Better labeling of the alcohol content of different containers is needed together with limiting production, marketing and serving of alcohol in large containers.

     

Sedative,hypnotic, anxiolytic and opioid medicament use and its co-occurrence with tobacco smoking and alcohol risk drinking in a community sample

Background  

Sedative, hypnotic, anxiolytic and opioid medicament (SO) use and its relation to tobacco smoking and alcohol risk drinking is largely unknown. Prevalence data for SO intake and its co-occurrence with tobacco smoking and alcohol risk drinking considering age are presented.     

Heavy drinking and alcohol-related injuries in college students

Objective

The main objective of this study is to evaluate the effect of heavy drinking on alcohol-related injuries.

Material and methods

We carried out an open cohort study among university students in Spain (n = 1,382). Heavy drinking and alcohol-related injuries were measured by administrating AUDIT questionnaires to every participant at the ages of 18, 20, 22 and 24. For data analysis we used a Multilevel Logistic Regression for repeated measures adjusting for consumption of alcohol and cannabis.

Results

The response rate at the beginning of the study was 99.6% (1,369 students). The incidence rate of alcohol-related injuries was 3.2 per 100 students year. After adjusting for alcohol consumption and cannabis use, the multivariate model revealed that a high frequency of heavy drinking was a risk factor for alcohol-related injuries (Odds Ratio = 3.89 [95%CI: 2.16 – 6.99]). The proportion of alcohol-related injuries in exposed subjects attributable to heavy drinking was 59.78% [95%CI: 32.75 – 75.94] while the population attributable fraction was 45.48% [95%CI: 24.91 – 57.77].

Conclusion

We can conclude that heavy drinking leads to an increase of alcohol-related injuries. This shows a new dimension on the consequences of this public concern already related with a variety of health and social problems. Furthermore, our results allow us to suggest that about half of alcohol-related injuries could be avoided by removing this consumption pattern.     

The Enduring Impact of Parents’ Monitoring,Warmth, Expectancies,and Alcohol Use on Their Children’s Future Binge Drinking and Arrests: a Longitudinal Analysis

Binge drinking is associated with many health and financial costs and is linked to risks of legal consequences. As alcohol use typically is initiated during adolescence, the current study assessed the relationship between parental behaviors and strategies in forecasting adolescents’ likelihood of binge drinking and later arrest. Restricted data from waves I–IV of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health were used to assess hypotheses. A weighted path analytic model (N?=?9421) provided a multifaceted picture of variables linked to later antisocial behavior. Low parental monitoring, low parental warmth, parent alcohol use, and parent expectancies regarding their children’s alcohol use were associated with higher incidence of adolescent binge drinking. In turn, low monitoring, low warmth, parent alcohol use, parent expectancies, and underage consumption were associated with binge drinking in early adulthood. Binge drinking during both adolescence and young adulthood were predictive of respondents’ likelihood of arrest 8–14 years later. Findings demonstrated the substantial, enduring effects of parental behaviors on child alcohol-related actions and have implications for parent-targeted interventions designed to reduce excessive alcohol consumption. They suggest campaigns focus on parenting strategies that involve setting effective and strict alcohol-related rules and guidelines, while maintaining a warm and supportive family environment.