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WASHINGTON – Tobacco use and the expectation of social and physical pleasure from alcohol consumption significantly predict the transition to heavy drinking among adolescents and young adults, a 5-year study of more than 200 people shows.
Tobacco use (100 or more cigarettes lifetime) and alcohol expectancies for social/physical pleasure significantly predicted increased rates of transition from first drink to heavy drinking with hazard ratios of 1.64 and 1.06 (P is less than .05), reported Karen G. Chartier, Ph.D., of the University of Connecticut Health Center in Farmington.
Interestingly, an early age of first drink (younger than 15 years) significantly predicted decreased rates of progression to heavy drinking, with a hazard ratio of 0.51 (P is less than .05).
The data were presented as a poster at a joint meeting sponsored by the Research Society on Alcoholism and the International Society for Biomedical Research on Alcoholism.
Participants in the study came from a community sample drawn from the greater Hartford, Conn., area. Initially, participants interviewed were between the ages of 13 and 21 years. Five years later, they were interviewed again. A total of 281 completed the second interview.
The researchers looked at a number of potential risk factors for progression to heavy drinking, including gender, parental history of alcoholism, disinhibition and thrill/adventure seeking, conduct disorder, negative affectivity, age of first drink, positive alcohol expectancies, marijuana use, and tobacco use.
At the 5-year follow-up, almost all (96%) reported ever having had a drink. Of these, slightly more were female (60%). More were white (62%) followed by black (23%), Hispanic (13%), and other (2%). The average age at follow-up was 16.5 years. The average age of the first drink was 15.5 years. The average number of drinks per day was 1.5, and the average number of drinks per occasion was 3.
Of those who reported ever drinking, one-third (35%) were heavy drinkers, defined as consuming alcohol at least 4 days per week and consuming three or more drinks per day. The average age of onset for heavy drinking was 20 years. The median time from the first drink to the start of heavy drinking was 9 years.
The study results suggest that interventions for heavy drinking in adolescence might need to target positive beliefs about alcohol, co-occurring tobacco use, and sensation-seeking behaviors, the researchers noted.
WASHINGTON – Tobacco use and the expectation of social and physical pleasure from alcohol consumption significantly predict the transition to heavy drinking among adolescents and young adults, a 5-year study of more than 200 people shows.
Tobacco use (100 or more cigarettes lifetime) and alcohol expectancies for social/physical pleasure significantly predicted increased rates of transition from first drink to heavy drinking with hazard ratios of 1.64 and 1.06 (P is less than .05), reported Karen G. Chartier, Ph.D., of the University of Connecticut Health Center in Farmington.
Interestingly, an early age of first drink (younger than 15 years) significantly predicted decreased rates of progression to heavy drinking, with a hazard ratio of 0.51 (P is less than .05).
The data were presented as a poster at a joint meeting sponsored by the Research Society on Alcoholism and the International Society for Biomedical Research on Alcoholism.
Participants in the study came from a community sample drawn from the greater Hartford, Conn., area. Initially, participants interviewed were between the ages of 13 and 21 years. Five years later, they were interviewed again. A total of 281 completed the second interview.
The researchers looked at a number of potential risk factors for progression to heavy drinking, including gender, parental history of alcoholism, disinhibition and thrill/adventure seeking, conduct disorder, negative affectivity, age of first drink, positive alcohol expectancies, marijuana use, and tobacco use.
At the 5-year follow-up, almost all (96%) reported ever having had a drink. Of these, slightly more were female (60%). More were white (62%) followed by black (23%), Hispanic (13%), and other (2%). The average age at follow-up was 16.5 years. The average age of the first drink was 15.5 years. The average number of drinks per day was 1.5, and the average number of drinks per occasion was 3.
Of those who reported ever drinking, one-third (35%) were heavy drinkers, defined as consuming alcohol at least 4 days per week and consuming three or more drinks per day. The average age of onset for heavy drinking was 20 years. The median time from the first drink to the start of heavy drinking was 9 years.
The study results suggest that interventions for heavy drinking in adolescence might need to target positive beliefs about alcohol, co-occurring tobacco use, and sensation-seeking behaviors, the researchers noted.
WASHINGTON – Tobacco use and the expectation of social and physical pleasure from alcohol consumption significantly predict the transition to heavy drinking among adolescents and young adults, a 5-year study of more than 200 people shows.
Tobacco use (100 or more cigarettes lifetime) and alcohol expectancies for social/physical pleasure significantly predicted increased rates of transition from first drink to heavy drinking with hazard ratios of 1.64 and 1.06 (P is less than .05), reported Karen G. Chartier, Ph.D., of the University of Connecticut Health Center in Farmington.
Interestingly, an early age of first drink (younger than 15 years) significantly predicted decreased rates of progression to heavy drinking, with a hazard ratio of 0.51 (P is less than .05).
The data were presented as a poster at a joint meeting sponsored by the Research Society on Alcoholism and the International Society for Biomedical Research on Alcoholism.
Participants in the study came from a community sample drawn from the greater Hartford, Conn., area. Initially, participants interviewed were between the ages of 13 and 21 years. Five years later, they were interviewed again. A total of 281 completed the second interview.
The researchers looked at a number of potential risk factors for progression to heavy drinking, including gender, parental history of alcoholism, disinhibition and thrill/adventure seeking, conduct disorder, negative affectivity, age of first drink, positive alcohol expectancies, marijuana use, and tobacco use.
At the 5-year follow-up, almost all (96%) reported ever having had a drink. Of these, slightly more were female (60%). More were white (62%) followed by black (23%), Hispanic (13%), and other (2%). The average age at follow-up was 16.5 years. The average age of the first drink was 15.5 years. The average number of drinks per day was 1.5, and the average number of drinks per occasion was 3.
Of those who reported ever drinking, one-third (35%) were heavy drinkers, defined as consuming alcohol at least 4 days per week and consuming three or more drinks per day. The average age of onset for heavy drinking was 20 years. The median time from the first drink to the start of heavy drinking was 9 years.
The study results suggest that interventions for heavy drinking in adolescence might need to target positive beliefs about alcohol, co-occurring tobacco use, and sensation-seeking behaviors, the researchers noted.