International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction最新文献

Frequent or chronic cannabis use can have negative effects on the adolescent and young adult (AYA) brain and psychosocial development. This study investigated the psychosocial impact of frequent cannabis use in a prospective study of sexually active female AYA patients. Participants completed questionnaires at three separate visits over a period of one year. A total of 545 AYA women were included in our analysis. Most (94%) identified as individuals of color, including 37% as non-Black Hispanic, 16% as Hispanic Black, and 41% as non-Hispanic Black. Multivariable regression analyses showed that using cannabis 20 or more times in the prior month was significantly associated with a higher likelihood of being suspended (OR=2.71, 95%CI:1.48, 4.57; p<.001), as well as with increased number of depressive symptoms (β=0.48, 95%CI:0.23-0.75; p<.001) and delinquent behaviors (β=0.81, 95%CI:0.56-1.06; p<.001). Cross-lagged models showed that frequent cannabis use was associated with increased depressive symptoms six months later (β=0.09, p<.05), and higher levels of delinquency six months (β=0.20, p<.001) and 12 months later (β=0.12, p<.05). This study demonstrated that frequent cannabis use was prospectively associated with negative psychosocial outcomes for AYA women of color, including depression and delinquency.

This study aims to uncover distinctive patterns in weight control methods within latent classes among Korean adolescents. It explores how substance use (i.e., alcohol, traditional cigarettes, e-cigarettes, and heated tobacco products) and mental health (i.e., stress, depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation) impact each class. Using the cross-sectional secondary dataset from the 2022 Korea Youth Risk Behavior Survey, which includes 26,942 Korean adolescents, latent class analysis categorizes weight control methods into three groups: “Class 1: Medication-Centered Weight Control Group,” “Class 2: Diet-Centered Group,” and “Class 3: Holistic Approach to Diet and Exercise Group.” The results indicate that substance use and mental health challenges both increase the risk of medication-centered or diet-centered weight control practices in male adolescents. In contrast, only mental health challenges heighten the risk in female adolescents. This study contributes to a more profound comprehension of the intricate relationship between substance use, mental health, and weight control practices in Korean adolescents.

There is growing public interest in the use of hallucinogens to manage mental health symptoms (i.e., medicinal hallucinogen use). Yet, limited research has examined the correlates of hallucinogen use for self-described medicinal purposes––an important gap given that self-medication may confer increased risk for harm. Accordingly, this study examined the demographic, mental health, and substance use correlates of medicinal hallucinogen use relative to no hallucinogen use and to exclusively recreational hallucinogen use. Adults reporting no hallucinogen use (n = 4837), medicinal hallucinogen use (n = 110), and exclusively recreational hallucinogen use (n = 240) were recruited from across Canada via Prolific and from six Canadian universities. Participants completed an online questionnaire assessing demographic characteristics, mental health, hallucinogen use, and other substance use. Logistic regression analyses showed that greater depression severity; more frequent use of alcohol, cannabis, and nicotine; and using several illegal and prescription drugs were associated with an increased likelihood of medicinal hallucinogen use relative to no hallucinogen use. Greater depression severity was also associated with an increased likelihood of medicinal hallucinogen use relative to exclusively recreational hallucinogen use. Further, participants who used hallucinogens for medicinal reasons reported more frequent hallucinogen use relative to those who used hallucinogens for exclusively recreational reasons. Results suggest that poorer mental health and greater use of other substances differentiate people who use hallucinogens for medicinal reasons from people who do not use hallucinogens or who use hallucinogens for exclusively recreational reasons. Further, medicinal hallucinogen use, relative to exclusively recreational hallucinogen use, is associated with using hallucinogens more frequently. Findings may inform targeted preventive and harm reduction interventions for hallucinogen use.

Rapid assessment for alcohol use in clinical practice and research is key to improved health and study participation. We assessed the correlation between Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) score and responses from a single question on frequency of alcohol use among people living in fishing communities of Uganda. Four hundred nineteen participants screened for a simulated vaccine efficacy trial completed the AUDIT and single question. Spearman’s correlation coefficients compared the two tools. There was significant correlation between the AUDIT score and the single question (rho = 0.824, P < 0.001). The single question can be used as an alternative to the full AUDIT during screening.

Coping and enhancement motives are theoretically implicated in the risks associated with compulsive buying, yet there is a paucity of empirical support. The current study aimed to (1) develop and validate a psychometrically sound measure of coping and enhancement buying motives and (2) assess the unique association of coping/enhancement buying motives with Yi and Baumgartner’s (2023) four dimensions of compulsive buying. Two samples collected by online panel companies were used for measurement development (N = 859) and for validity and hypothesis testing (N = 1157). A seven-item Affective Buying Motives Questionnaire (ABMQ) consisting of coping and enhancement motives was supported. Path analyses identified coping motives as a stronger positive predictor of the financial and interpersonal problems dimensions of compulsive buying. However, both motives were equivalent positive predictors of the excessive buying and phenomenology of pathological buying dimensions of compulsive buying. Our findings point to the unique compulsive buying risks associated with the coping and enhancement motives of buying.

The diverging trends of decreasing alcohol use and increasing anxiety symptoms among adolescents raise a question, has the strength of the well-known association between these issues also changed. This study examined changes in the co-occurrence and associations between heavy episodic drinking (HED) and generalized anxiety (GA) among Finnish adolescents between 2013 and 2023. From the repeated cross-sectional Finnish School Health Promotion Study (N = 874 110, age 13–20 years) we estimated self-reported GA symptoms and HED. The proportion of those with both HED and moderate to severe GA increased from 2.9% in 2013 to 3.6% in 2023, indicating a 21.5% relative difference. The association between GA symptoms and HED was stable during the study period (ORs 1.06–1.07). Although the association has been stable, there has been a rise in the proportion of adolescents experiencing both conditions concurrently over the past decade. This calls for strengthening the integration of mental health and substance use prevention and services.

Adolescents’ access to alcohol has been associated with a higher risk of harmful use in the future. In this study, we aimed to identify latent class patterns of how Brazilian adolescents access alcohol, including parental supply, friends supply, other person supply, home access, and purchase. We examined the prospective association between these access methods and alcohol-related harms and binge drinking over 9 months of follow-up. We leveraged data via anonymous questionnaires at baseline and 9 months of follow-up from 1149 8th-grade students (mean age 13.4 years, 56.83% girls) across 37 public schools in three Brazilian cities, allocated to the control arm of the #Tamojunto 2.0 program. Four classes of access to alcohol emerged: (1) “low access to alcohol” (67%), (2) “friend supply only” (16%), (3) “purchase only” (14%), and (4) “high access to alcohol” (3%). Adolescents with low access to alcohol were less likely to engage in other access methods. Friends were the main source of alcohol. The more sources of access, the greater the alcohol-related harms. Policies and interventions should focus on targeted prevention programs that address common alcohol access methods among adolescents.

The period immediately following residential substance use disorder (SUD) treatment is characterized by high rates of return to substance use. Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is highly prevalent among individuals in residential SUD treatment and is a primary motive for substance use among individuals with co-occurring PTSD and SUD. Addressing important gaps in the literature, the current study examined the role of PTSD severity on days of substance use during the 30 days immediately following residential SUD treatment over and above demographic, SUD, and clinical factors associated with return to substance use. Participants (N = 65, M_age = 40.6, 52% women, 79% white) completed semi-structured diagnostic interviews for PTSD and SUD and self-report measures of demographics and depression while in residential SUD treatment (approximately one week before discharge), and then a follow-up assessment (timeline follow-back for substance use) approximately one month after discharge. Greater PTSD severity was associated with more days of substance use in the 30 days immediately following residential SUD treatment over and above demographic (i.e., race/ethnicity, gender, employment, housing insecurity), SUD (i.e., alcohol, stimulant, opioid, cannabis, and sedative/hypnotic/anxiolytic use disorder severity), and clinical (i.e., depression severity) factors. Findings underscore the importance of PTSD assessment and intervention during residential SUD treatment and re-entry planning to assist in mitigating return to substance use during community reintegration.

Physical activity (PA) positively impacts mental health by reducing psychological distress (PD), while cannabis use can increase PD. This study investigates the moderating effect of physical activity (PA) on the relationship between the frequency of past 90-day cannabis use (CU) and psychological distress (PD) among college students, using data from the American College Health Association’s National College Health Assessment III surveys (2019–2023). We explored the following research questions: (1) Does PA moderate the relationship between CU and PD? (2) How do different levels of PA influence PD and CU? The Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K6) measured PD, and CU was categorized as never, once-monthly, and weekly-daily. Three PA measures (hours of moderate and vigorous activity, and days of strength training) were used in a Two-Step Cluster analysis to group participants by PA level. The study included 157,880 students from 127 universities, predominantly aged 18–29, biologically female, and non-Hispanic white. CU frequency was linked to increased PD, but higher PA levels were associated with lower PD. The interaction between PA and CU was significant, indicating PA moderates CU’s impact on PD. The study’s findings suggest that PA may serve as a protective factor against PD associated with CU. Public health strategies could incorporate PA as a harms reduction approach for cannabis users, particularly targeting college students who may be at high risk for PD. Future research should further explore the mechanisms underlying the moderating effect of physical activity and expand these findings to more diverse populations.

As part of a multilayered scoping review, we assessed literature on prevention and management interventions for racial/ethnic minorities in the United States (US) who non-medically use prescription opioids and/or who use illicit opioids such as heroin. The review specifically focused on access to and uptake of medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) and harm reduction resources. We conducted a scoping review of peer-reviewed literature and governmental reports published between January 2000 and August 2024 on patterns of access to, and acceptability and utilization of, overdose prevention and opioid use management resources among racial/ethnic minorities in the US. Searches were conducted on Cochrane, PubMed, Embase, and Google Scholar, with us examining studies on the uptake of MOUD, such as buprenorphine and methadone, syringe services programs (SSPs), safe consumption sites, and harm reduction resources like naloxone (used to reverse overdoses) and fentanyl test strips (used to test for the presence of fentanyl in drug supplies). Additionally, we sought to identify and describe existing interventions for opioid use prevention and management that have expressly incorporated cultural adaptations related to racial/ethnic minorities’ specific needs and preferences in an effort to improve participants' sense of salience and acceptability and thus enhance utilization. We further endeavored to leverage this scoping review towards the development of research and intervention guidelines contoured to improve future scholarship and programming with these populations. The existing evidence suggests that racial/ethnic minorities in the US, specifically Black individuals, have diminished access to and/or utilization of preventive and management resources and amenities such as buprenorphine and naloxone, owing to structural deficits, provider bias, socioeconomic obstacles, geographic barriers, and communal stigma and distrust. Black individuals, relative to White individuals, also appear less likely to report using SSPs to obtain syringes and related resources, but across racial groups, those who used SSPs were more likely to be trained in, possess, and/or use naloxone. Further, there have been very few culturally tailored interventions for harm reduction or MOUD; there were limited data across the reviewed works on Native American/Indigenous or Asian populations; and the broader body of literature lacks methodological rigor. We close by proposing a cultural humility-focused model for better meeting the complex needs of these populations through research and primary and secondary intervention.