Stress, Depression, Irrational Beliefs, and Alcohol Use and Problems in a College Student Sample

One-hundred thirty-five alcohol-using college students completed a questionnaire on their levels of alcohol use, moderate-to-severe problems with alcohol use, the Eysenck 1.7 measure of impulsiveness and venturesomeness, the Zung depression scale, the "Hassles and Uplifts" scale of life stresses, and a scale of proneness to irrational beliefs. Impulsivity and venturesomeness were significantly correlated with quantity-frequency of alcohol use, but not with the occurrence of alcohol use problems; whereas depression, stress, and irrational beliefs were significantly correlated with alcohol problems, but not with alcohol use. Multiple regression analyses indicated that the effect of stress on alcohol problems was mediated by depression, whereas the effect of depression, in turn, was mediated by irrational beliefs.     

ALDH2 Status, Alcohol Expectancies, and Alcohol Response: Preliminary Evidence for a Mediation Model

BACKGROUND: A genetic variant in the alcohol-metabolizing enzyme (aldehyde dehydrogenase; ALDH2*2 allele), common in individuals of Asian heritage, has been associated with both physiologic response to alcohol and alcohol consumption. Prior research has also demonstrated that those with ALDH2*2 alleles have lower positive alcohol expectancies than those without these alleles. This preliminary study was designed to test whether the level of response to alcohol is the mechanism by which ALDH2 status may affect alcohol expectancies. METHODS: Data were collected from 32 Asian American college students (14 women and 18 men). By use of a randomized, double-blind design, participants were administered oral placebo and alcohol at separate laboratory sessions. Data included blood tests to establish ALDH2 status, questionnaire measures of demographic information and alcohol expectancy, and several physiologic measures collected after placebo and alcohol administration. RESULTS: ALDH2 status was related to alcohol response measures for both men and women. ALDH2 status was also related to tension reduction expectancies for women and to expectancies for cognitive behavioral impairment for men. In the male sample, the ALDH2/expectancy relationship was fully explained by the level of response to alcohol. CONCLUSIONS: These results represent a first step in understanding the mechanisms by which genetic factors, such as ALDH2 status, can affect alcohol-related learning.     

Alcohol Expectancies and Drinking Characteristics in Parents of Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Alcohol expectancies, drinking characteristics, and their association were examined in 587 adults: 431 parents of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and 156 parents of children without ADHD. In addition to examining both traditional and parenting-specific alcohol expectancies for these adults, risk variables cutting across the two groups were considered: single parenthood and male gender. Few differences in mean expectancy levels were found between parents of children with and without ADHD, between single and married mothers, and between men and women. Furthermore, expectancies did not predict drinking differently across groups. However, there was some support for the utility of assessing parental expectations of alcohol's effects on interactions with children, and there were robust and interesting effects of socioeconomic status on expectancies and drinking. Single mothers also reported consuming higher quantities of alcohol than married mothers. Findings are discussed in terms of the link between ADHD and alcoholism, the ability of alcohol expectancies to explain drinking differences between high risk groups, the effect of socioeconomic status on these variables, and single motherhood as a vulnerability factor for increased drinking.     

Blood Glucose Level, Alcohol Heavy Drinking, and Alcohol Craving During Treatment for Alcohol Dependence: Results From the Combined Pharmacotherapies and Behavioral Interventions for Alcohol Dependence (COMBINE) Study

Background: Heavy drinking may increase blood glucose levels. Moreover, in alcohol‐dependent subjects, glucose may play a putative role in alcohol preference. Methods: This study investigated the relationship between blood glucose levels and both alcohol heavy drinking and craving in alcohol‐dependent subjects participating in the COMBINE Study. The primary objective was to evaluate the relationship between baseline (pretreatment) glucose levels and percentage of heavy drinking day (PHDD) during treatment. The secondary objective was to evaluate the relationship between glucose levels, baseline PHDD, and craving measured by the Obsessive Compulsive Drinking Scale (OCDS). Results: This analysis consisted of 1,324 participants. Baseline glucose levels were significantly and positively associated with PHDD during treatment [F(1, 1225) = 5.21, p = 0.023], after controlling for baseline PHDD [F(1, 1225) = 36.25, p < 0.0001], gender [F (1, 1225) = 3.33, p = 0.07], and body mass index (BMI) [F(1, 1225) = 0.31, p = 0.58]. Higher glucose levels at baseline were associated with a higher percentage of PHDD at pretreatment [F(1, 1304) = 5.96, p = 0.015], after controlling for gender [F(1, 1304) = 0.29, p = 0.59] and BMI [F(1, 1304) = 0.90, p = 0.34]. Glucose was not significantly associated with the OCDS total score [F(1, 1304) = 0.12, p = 0.73], the OCDS Obsessive subscale [F(1, 1304) = 0.35, p = 0.56], or the OCDS Compulsive subscale [F(1, 1304) = 1.19, p = 0.28] scores, after controlling for gender and BMI. Discussion: A link between pretreatment glucose levels and heavy drinking during treatment was found, suggesting a role of glucose in predicting heavy alcohol consumption. Although caution is needed in the interpretation of these results, elevated glucose and heavy drinking may be affected by a common mechanism and manipulations affecting glucose regulation may influence alcohol consumption.