Early Adolescent and Peer Drinking Homogeneity: Similarities and Differences Among European and North American Countries

The science of child and adolescent mental health in Greece: a nationwide systematic review

Evidence-based information is essential for effective mental health care, yet the extent and accessibility of the scientific literature are critical barriers for professionals and policymakers. To map the necessities and make validated resources accessible, we undertook a systematic review of scientific evidence on child and adolescent mental health in Greece encompassing three research topics: prevalence estimates, assessment instruments, and interventions. We searched Pubmed, Web of Science, PsycINFO, Google Scholar, and IATPOTEK from inception to December 16th, 2021. We included studies assessing the prevalence of conditions, reporting data on assessment tools, and experimental interventions. For each area, manuals informed data extraction and the methodological quality were ascertained using validated tools. This review was registered in protocols.io [68583]. We included 104 studies reporting 533 prevalence estimates, 223 studies informing data on 261 assessment instruments, and 34 intervention studies. We report the prevalence of conditions according to regions within the country. A repository of locally validated instruments and their psychometrics was compiled. An overview of interventions provided data on their effectiveness. The outcomes are made available in an interactive resource online [ https://rpubs.com/camhi/sysrev_table ]. Scientific evidence on child and adolescent mental health in Greece has now been cataloged and appraised. This timely and accessible compendium of up-to-date evidence offers valuable resources for clinical practice and policymaking in Greece and may encourage similar assessments in other countries.

Factors associated with alcohol consumption among early adolescents in a province in Eastern region of Thailand: a cross-sectional analysis

A cross-sectional study was applied to obtain factors associated with alcohol consumption since information among early adolescents in Thailand is limited. Data was collected from December 2016 to March 2017. A questionnaire was developed through a literature review and tested for validation and reliability. Multi-stage random sampling was used to recruit youths aged 10-14 years from Chonburi Province, Thailand. Descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation), Chi-squared test, and multivariable logistic regression were used for data analysis. The mean and standard deviation (SD) for the age of participants was 12.07 years (1.42) with 50.23% being male. In total, 10.94% reported drinking alcohol in the past 12 months. Current drinking in the past year was positively associated with older youths of 14 years of age (AOR = 5.34, 95% CI = 2.91-9.81) having a positive attitude toward alcohol consumption behavior (AOR = 4.18 95% CI = 3.36-5.21), direct observation of friends' drinking (AOR = 4.21, 95% CI = 3.32-5.32), direct observation of villagers/community members' drinking (AOR = 1.99, 95% CI = 1.15- 3.48), adolescents whose parents stored alcohol at home (AOR = 1.35, 95% CI = 1.06-1.55), and being exposed to alcohol advertising (AOR = 1.60, 95% CI =1.16-2.23). The factor most inversely associated with current drinking appears to be male gender (AOR = 0.78, 95% CI =0.64-0.94). Strategies for delaying and reducing drinking among early adolescents should accompany these risk factors into any preventive programs.

Prevalence and co-occurrence of unhealthy lifestyle habits and behaviours among secondary school students in Tuscany, central Italy

OBJECTIVES

Unhealthy habits acquired during adolescence may persist in adulthood and eventually increase the risk of chronic illnesses.

STUDY DESIGN

We reported on a survey conducted in 2013-2015 among secondary school students in Tuscany, central Italy.

METHODS

We compared the prevalence of self-reported lifestyle characteristics and overweight/obesity between genders and age groups (14-16 vs 17-21 years). We partitioned each gender- and age-specific stratum into groups based on cigarette smoking and engagement in sport activities, and compared the prevalence of other unhealthy lifestyles across groups using Poisson regression.

RESULTS

Overall, 2167 students (53.3% males, mean age 16.8 years) were included. Males were more frequently overweight/obese than females. Cigarette smoking increased with age and did not differ by gender. Males were more likely to engage in sport activities, drink alcoholic beverages and adopt other unhealthy lifestyle habits, whereas females reported a more frequent use of painkillers. Cigarette smoking was the single lifestyle characteristic most consistently associated with other unhealthy habits.

CONCLUSIONS

The prevalence and patterns of co-occurrence of unhealthy lifestyle habits varied by gender and age group among secondary school students in Italy. Our findings should be taken into account when planning public health initiatives aiming to combat obesity and tackle unhealthy lifestyles among secondary school students in Italy.

Peer Group Patterns of Alcohol-Using Behaviors Among Early Adolescents in Victoria, Australia, and Washington State, United States

The goal of this study was to examine and cross-nationally compare the peer group patterns of alcohol-drinking behaviors among cohorts of early adolescents (ages 11-14 years) in Victoria, Australia, and Washington State, United States. Latent transition analysis revealed that after 1 year, transitions congruent with peer influence (whereby non-drinking adolescents initiated alcohol use in the presence of drinking peers) and reverse peer influence were observed in both states; however, transitions congruent with peer selection (whereby drinking adolescents self-selected into drinking peer groups) were only observed among Victorian early adolescents. Findings were interpreted to suggest that Australian family and cultural norms that more commonly allow early adolescent alcohol use lead to a higher rate of peer selection.

Display of alcohol use on Facebook: a content analysis

The present study has two main objectives. First, to examine how alcohol use is portrayed in the visual and textual references on Facebook, and second, to determine how friends react to these alcohol-related postings. A theoretically based content analysis of 160 Facebook profiles generated 2,575 pictures and 92 status updates referring to alcohol use, which represented about 6.50% of the pictures in the total sample and 2.90% of the status updates. These visual and textual references, as well as the peer reactions to these posts, mostly referred to alcohol use in a positive context (72.23% of the pictures and 72.83% of the messages). Furthermore, multiple regression analyses identified the number of Facebook friends and the number of status updates referring to alcohol use as significant predictors of the total number of uploaded pictures containing alcohol use. The results of this study are discussed within the framework of expectancy models of behavior and media effects theories, and show that alcohol-related references are quite common, while negative reactions to these posts are seldom. Further research into the effects of these visual and textual messages is warranted.