Drinking patterns and victimization among male and female students in Mexico

Psychiatric comorbidities in alcohol use disorder

Alcohol use disorder is a major contributor to the morbidity and mortality burden worldwide. It often coexists with other psychiatric disorders; however, the nature of this comorbidity is still a matter of debate. In this Series paper, we examine the main psychiatric disorders associated with alcohol use disorder, including the prevalence of co-occurring disorders, the temporal nature of the relationship, and mechanisms that might explain comorbidity across the lifespan. Overall, this disorder co-occurs with a wide range of other psychiatric disorders, especially those disorders involving substance use and violent or aggressive behaviour. The causal pathways between alcohol use disorder and other psychiatric disorders are heterogeneous. Hypotheses explaining these relationships include reciprocal direct causal associations, shared genetic and environmental causes, and shared psychopathological characteristics of broader diagnostic entities (eg, externalising disorders). Efforts to untangle the associations between alcohol use disorder and other disorders across the lifespan remain a crucial avenue of research.

Collateral damage from college drinking: A conceptual framework for alcohol's harms to others among US college students

BACKGROUND

A growing literature shows that drinkers can harm bystanders through alcohol-related harms to others (HTO). The burden of HTO is particularly consequential in college environments, where heavy alcohol consumption and related harms are highly prevalent. A key limitation to the current literature on HTO among college students is that the determinants of HTO in college settings are not well-described.

OBJECTIVE

This article presents an evidence- and theory-based conceptual framework of HTO among United States college students.

METHODS

This study used a literature review in Embase, PsycInfo, PubMed, and Web of Science to determine the prevalence of HTO among college students and literature gaps. Researchers supplemented college HTO literature with broader HTO literature to develop a conceptual framework.

RESULTS

Prevalence estimates for HTO among college populations range from 59% to 84%. Literature on HTO among college students is mostly confined to brief sections of larger surveys. The college HTO literature lacks the level of detail necessary to support methodologically rigorous research.

CONCLUSIONS

HTO are prevalent among college populations but their prevalence and etiology are not well understood. This likely leads to systematic undercounting of the impact of alcohol in college settings, exacerbating the "translation" gap between what the research says is effective and what colleges actually do. Better understanding of HTO mechanisms through which drinkers harm those around them would inform alcohol research and policy on college campuses, and lead to more accurate assessments of the degree to which stronger alcohol policies could benefit all students, regardless of their drinking patterns.

Age of Onset, Current Use of Alcohol, Tobacco or Marijuana and Current Polysubstance Use Among Male and Female Mexican Students

Aims

This study aimed to examine alcohol, tobacco or marijuana use onset and associations between age of onset and current use, and between age of onset and current polysubstance use among a sample of Mexican young people aged 17-20 years.

Methods

Alcohol, tobacco, marijuana and other substance use were identified in a 2012 cross-sectional survey of male and female students entering first year university in Mexico City. Chi-square tests and logistic regression models examined associations between gender, age of onset, order of onset, family substance use and current polysubstance use among 22,224 students.

Results

The largest proportions of males and females initiated alcohol at age 15, tobacco at ages 15-16 and marijuana at ages 16-17. Earlier alcohol and tobacco initiation was associated with past 30-day use of the same substance. Gender differences in alcohol and tobacco use were small but males were significantly more likely than females to use marijuana and be polysubstance users. Family substance use was associated with earlier onset. There was a significant association between the earliest age of any of the three substances and current polysubstance use.

Conclusions

A number of contextual and cultural factors in Mexico may be contributing to early onset, continued use and polysubstance use and deserve attention in research and by prevention programs.

Associação entre o consumo de bebidas alcoólicas e tabaco e a religiosidade

Resumo Objetivo Verificar a associação entre a religiosidade e o padrão de consumo de álcool e tabaco em população atendida na Atenção Primária à Saúde. Métodos Estudo transversal realizado com 363 indivíduos, maiores de 18 anos. A variável de exposição, religiosidade, foi avaliada segundo o Índice de Religiosidade da Universidade de Duke. O desfecho, consumo de álcool e tabaco, foi avaliado pelo questionário Alcohol, Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test (ASSIST). Verificou-se a associação entre exposição e desfecho, com base na análise de regressão logística multivariada. Resultados Foi alta a prevalência no consumo de álcool e tabaco nos grupos mais vulneráveis. As religiosidades organizacional e intrínseca mostraram-se fator de proteção em relação ao consumo moderado/alto de álcool e tabaco. Conclusão Quanto maior o escore para a religiosidade organizacional e intrínseca, menor o consumo para essas substâncias.

Parental monitoring and family relations: associations with drinking patterns among male and female Mexican students

INTRODUCTION

Parental monitoring and family relations are recognized as protective factors for youth alcohol use. The purpose of this study was to investigate perceived parental monitoring and family relations among subgroups of Mexican youths with different patterns of drinking behaviors and consequences.

METHODS

A latent profile analysis (LPA) identified profiles of drinking behavior in a cross-sectional survey of entering first year university students. Multinomial regression examined associations between parental monitoring, family relations and drinking profiles among 22,224 students.

RESULTS

Both lower perceived parental monitoring and weaker perceived family relations were associated with heavier drinking profiles among males and females, but more strongly associated with female than male heavier drinking profiles. Being older, having parents with lower education, and not living with parents were also associated with lower parental monitoring and weaker family relations. There was a general trend of lower parental monitoring and weaker family relations as the profiles increased from Non/Infrequent-No Consequences to Excessive-Many Consequences Drinkers. Lower perceived parental monitoring and weaker perceived family relations were more strongly associated with drinking profiles among females than among males. Both the parental monitoring and family relations scales had similar associations with drinking profiles.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings suggest that drinking norms and values may contribute to any protective influences of parental monitoring and family relations on Mexican youths' drinking. Research about changes in drinking norms, contextual factors, and youth-parent trust would inform the utility of parental monitoring or family relations as protective strategies against alcohol misuse among Mexican and Mexican American youths and also youths from other backgrounds.

Natural mentors and youth drinking: a qualitative study of Mexican youths

Parental influences on youth drinking are well documented but not the influence of extended family members. This article explores extended family influences on alcohol use among Mexican youths and whether extended family members can be considered natural mentors. We conducted a qualitative study using ethnographic open ended interviews with 117 first year university students in Mexico City. The ethnographic interviews revealed six drinking groups: excessive, heavy, regular, occasional, abstainers and non drinkers. Youths reported close relationships with extended family members who provided counsel and acted as representatives of familial norms and values. The alcohol beliefs and behaviors of these family members, including their alcohol misuse, had a positive influence on youths' alcohol attitudes. The naturally occurring mentoring relationships of Mexican extended family members can positively influence moderate youth drinking. Natural mentoring relationships should be encouraged and facilitated in prevention efforts for Mexican youths, Mexican-American youths and potentially other Hispanic/Latino youths.