Journal of studies on alcohol and drugs最新文献

Objective: Vaping among adolescents has surged in recent years, underscoring the need to identify intentions and motivating factors behind vaping. While weight management behaviours have been associated with vaping, the largely cross-sectional evidence precludes understanding of how these behaviours may relate to and reinforce each other over time. This study explored the bidirectional associations between vaping and changed eating to manage weight and shape over three years of adolescence.

Method: Adolescents from the [deidentified] study (N = 8,960, M_age = 13.8 (SD = 1.1), 55.5% cisgender girls) completed self-report surveys annually for three years (T1 2020/2021, T2 2021/2022, T3 2022/2023). Data were analyzed using random-intercept cross-lagged panel models with full information maximum likelihood.

Results: Increases in vaping were noted over time (20.9% at T1, 40.0% at T3), and 30% of adolescents were changing their eating to manage their weight/shape each year. Weak but significant associations were generally observed, such that cisgender girls who changed their eating to manage weight/shape engaged in more vaping the following year (β_T1-T2 = .05, β_T2-T3 =.05). Conversely, cisgender girls and boys with a higher vaping frequency reported more days of changing eating to manage weight/shape one year later (β_T1-T2 = .02 and .04, β_T2-T3 =.05 and .06).

Conclusions: The bidirectional relationship between vaping and weight-related eating behaviours underscores the value of addressing these habits as interconnected behaviors, informing the development of targeted public health policies, preventative measures, and intervention strategies to support health and reduce the adoption of vaping among adolescents.

Objective: We assessed alcohol product availability, sales, and prices among privatized off-premises alcohol sales in 42 US states and quantified sales among lower-priced products.

Method: We used NielsenIQ weekly retail scanner data from 28 license states (where alcohol sales are privatized) and 14 control states (where alcohol sales are partially privatized and partially government controlled, e.g., for distilled spirits)-collectively representing privatized off-premises alcohol sales in 42 US states from November 11, 2018-November 4, 2023. We descriptively analyzed the latest year (November 2022-November 2023) of alcohol product availability (number of unique products), standard drink price, and standard drink sales, and compared it to estimates in the earliest year (November 2018-November 2019). We quantified the sales market share of products priced at or below $0.50, $0.75, and $1.00 per standard drink.

Results: Overall, product availability increased from 2018-2019 to 2022-2023 among all alcohol types, ranging from +7.4% (beer) to +67.0% (ready-to-drink beverages [RTDs]), while sales decreased for beer (-8.0%) and wine (-10.7%) and increased for spirits (+7.4% [license states only]) and RTDs (+68.6%). The average standard drink price paid remained <$2.00 through 2023. During 2022-2023, in license states, 57.4% of sales were ≤$1.00 per standard drink; across all states, 23.3% of beer sales (13.0% of beer products), 28.7% of wine sales (7.4% of wine products), and 18.4% of RTDs sales (24.0% of RTDs products) were ≤$1.00 per standard drink.

Conclusions: Among 42 US states, a substantial portion of alcohol sales were among lower priced products.

Objective: International mobility and collaborations are a cornerstone of the academic career trajectory, as well as a pathway to better science. The aim of this article is to advocate for enhancing global connections among early career investigators to improve science and accelerate addiction research discovery. Drawing from the author's experiences, we provide specific recommendations to help addiction researchers create international exchange programs for early career investigators.

Methods: The program consisted of four key components: (1) pre-exchange participant matching of early career investigators at each institution, (2) individualized goal setting for participants, (3) a structured orientation program on the first day of the in-person exchange, and (4) two weeks of research-focused, in-person collaborations and networking activities. Quantitative and qualitative data are presented, including 2-year outcomes from the program (N=8).

Results: The exchange program had both immediate and sustained impacts on professional development and research productivity. Participants reported increased confidence in international collaboration, a broadened global perspective, and enhanced scholarly output, with all participants emphasizing the critical importance of in-person interaction. Two years post-exchange, participants reported a more than threefold increase in internationally co-authored publications, a newly awarded international grant, and the establishment of four new formal mentorship relationships. All participants reported a change in their research focus, scientific approach, or lab management practices due to the exchange program. Unexpected benefits included strengthened collaboration within home research teams and the emergence of broader institutional partnerships in both the U.S. and Australia.

Conclusion: Understanding and addressing addiction requires a global perspective, and engaging early career researchers in international exchange programs can foster lasting collaborations and encourage globally-focused research. Even short-term exchanges can be cost-effective in promoting long-term productivity in international addiction research.

Objective: Alcohol use disorder is highly prevalent with known associations to poor health and memory. Diet interventions are a useful tool that have the potential to help many, as they are relatively non-invasive and accessible. The ketogenic diet (KD) is a high fat, low carbohydrate diet that has been used for decades to reduce seizures in children with epilepsy. In the current study, the effects of 3 weeks of KD on alcohol use and anxiety, and post-alcohol anxiety, sociability and memory were assessed in C57BL/6J mice.

Method: In Experiment 1 and 1a, mice were allowed to drink alcohol for 8 weeks using the intermittent drinking in the dark paradigm. Across the last 3 weeks of drinking, mice were fed either KD or a standard chow diet and tested for performance in a Barnes maze. In Experiment 2, mice were fed either KD or standard diet for 3 weeks and observed for anxiety and social behaviors, and memory. Experiment 2a extended this work using a small number of male mice that were injected with alcohol for 1 week prior to behavioral assessment.

Results: Overall, our findings suggest a therapeutic effect of KD on alcohol consumption and post-alcohol deficits.

Conclusions: Benefits were independent of effects on generalized anxiety yet support a more specific effect of KD to increase exploration and reduce behavioral inhibition. This study did not investigate the neurobiology mediating these effects and future research for this is now needed.

Objective: Learning theories suggest an aversive learning process whereby negative consequences of alcohol use (AU) curtail drinking. Yet, the literature examining this prospective association is mixed. We aimed to clarify this aversive learning process by identifying how (mediators), for whom (moderators), and when (differences across development) such learning occurs. Negative alcohol expectancies were proposed as a mediator and sensitivity to punishment (SP) was proposed as a moderator. Negative consequences were hypothesized to lead to increases in negative expectancies and, in turn, reductions in AU. Associations were expected to be strongest at high SP. This proposed aversive learning pathway was estimated in adolescence (limited alcohol experience) and young adulthood (significant alcohol experience) to examine differences in learning across developmental period.

Method: Data from a longitudinal community sample (N=387) assessed annually for three years in adolescence (ages = 12-14) and in young adulthood (ages = 19-21) were analyzed using prospective path models.

Results: In adolescence, negative consequences were not associated with negative expectancies, but negative expectancies were inversely associated with AU. In contrast, negative consequences were positively associated with negative expectancies in young adulthood, but negative expectancies were not associated with AU. Moderation was not supported.

Conclusions: Negative consequences are uncommon among community adolescents and, as a result, may not shape negative expectancies, yet negative expectancies are protective against AU. In young adulthood, negative consequences appear salient enough to shape negative expectancies, but they no longer serve a protective function. Findings suggest a shifting role of drinking experience in the development of expectancies and the influence of expectancies on AU.

Objective: The burden of alcohol-related disease is substantial and varies across regions, age and sexes. The study used the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2021 data to estimate the burden, emphasizing on changes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: The study analyzed trends in prevalence, mortality, disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), age-standardized prevalence rate (ASPR), age-standardized mortality rate (ASMR), and age-standardized DALYs of alcohol-related diseases [alcohol use disorder (AUD), cirrhosis due to alcohol, alcoholic cardiomyopathy and liver cancer due to alcohol use] across sex, age groups (adolescents, young adults, women of childbearing age, the working-age population, the elderly), and socio-demographic index (SDI) levels using annual percentage change (APC) and average annual percentage change (AAPC).

Results: Globally, prevalence of AUD increased by 31.44%, while the ASPR declined by 0.78% annually. China, India, United States of America bearded the higher burden. The prevalence of cirrhosis due to alcohol increased by 73.69%, alcoholic cardiomyopathy by 48.24%, and liver cancer due to alcohol use prevalence also increased. Working-age populations had the largest absolute numbers of cirrhosis due to alcohol and alcoholic cardiomyopathy, while the elderly had higher ASR of liver cancer due to alcohol use. Following 2019, improvements in most alcohol-related diseases decelerated, particularly in working-age population, potentially influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Conclusions: This study emphasizes the urgent need for targeted policies on alcohol-related diseases, especially for vulnerable groups, considering regional, socio-economic, and for timely interventions to reduce the long-term health impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Objective: Cannabis use has increased among older adults, yet the neurocognitive effects in this demographic remain unclear. Prior work has suggested cannabis may increase brain volume in areas rich in cannabinoid (CB1) receptors, though negative effects are often reported in adolescents. This study sought to clarify the relationship between cannabis use and brain health among middle-aged and older adults.

Method: Using data from the UK Biobank, which includes health information from over 500,000 adults, associations between cannabis use, regional brain volume, and cognition in participants aged 40-70 years (mean age = 54.5) were evaluated.

Results: Lifetime cannabis use was positively associated with regional brain volume in CB1-rich regions, including the caudate, putamen, hippocampus, and amygdala. Greater lifetime use was also linked to better performance in learning, processing speed, and short-term memory. Individuals reporting use limited to adolescence also showed larger regional volumes and better cognitive performance than non-users. Sex differences in cannabis effects on brain volume and cognition were also observed.

Conclusions: Results highlight that cannabis may influence brain health differently across the lifespan, potentially offering protective effects in older age while posing risks earlier in development. Protective effects may result from endocannabinoid-mediated modulation of inflammation, immune function, and neurodegeneration. Observed sex differences likely reflect variation in the endocannabinoid system and underscore the importance of considering sex as a biological variable in studies of cannabis and brain health.

Objective: Driving while intoxicated (DWI) remains a preventable source of morbidity and mortality in the United States. Ignition Interlock Devices (IID) are used to prevent DWI offenders from driving while intoxicated during a mandated installation period and are effective during that time. Once IIDs are removed, DWI rates are similar to levels of offenders who had no IID. This study tested the efficacy of a smartphone app (B-SMART) for DWI offenders with an IID and Concerned Family Members (CFMs), with the goal of reducing IID lockout events and alcohol consumption.

Method: Four B-SMART app modules were developed: 1) Life with Interlock, 2) Supporting Changes in Drinking, 3) Doing Things Together, and 4) Effective Communication. Participants (pairs of DWI offenders and CFMs) were randomly assigned to receive the B-SMART app (n=58) or referral to a state IID information page (Usual and Customary - UC condition, n=65) and followed for 9 months post-randomization. IID data (failed tests and lockout events) were obtained from IID providers as the primary outcome variables. Offender and CFM reports of alcohol consumption in the last 30 days prior to assessment were secondary measures.

Results: IID data were collected on 62% (N=76) of participants. B-SMART participants had significantly fewer lockout events than UC participants. B-SMART offenders and their CFMs reported significantly less likelihood of DWI offender drinking at 9-months.

Conclusions: Results suggest the B-SMART app reduced IID lockout events and DWI offender alcohol consumption. These outcomes are important because fewer IID lockout events predict lower DWI recidivism.

Objective: There is no externally validated instrument for predicting which children will show frequent substance use (SU) in young adulthood. This study evaluated whether an instrument previously shown to predict SU outcomes in mid-adolescence could also predict SU outcomes in young adulthood, comparing performance across ages and demographics.

Method: The Loeber Risk Score (LRS) is a 5-item, parent-completed screener indexing risk of future SU in children. We evaluated the predictive performance of the LRS in a nationally representative longitudinal birth cohort (N = 4,898, 48% female). Parents completed the LRS when the child was ∼5 and ∼9 years old. Subsequently, youth reported their SU at age ∼22 years old.

Results: The LRS at age 9 predicted several outcomes at age 22 better than chance (ps<0.05): daily cigarette use (AUROCs=0.71-0.75), cannabis use ≥3x week (AUROC=0.59), vaping ≥3x week (AUROC=0.55), and receipt of treatment for an alcohol/drug problem (AUROC=0.60). Performance was no better than chance for alcohol outcomes (AUROCs=0.47-0.50). Children with LRS scores ≥2 were 1.3-2.0 times more likely to display frequent substance use outcomes. There were no consistent performance differences when the LRS was measured at age 5 vs. age 9 or by child's sex, race, or ethnicity.

Conclusion: The LRS would be an improvement over random or ad hoc selection, but screening accuracy is generally low. Much more accurate screeners are needed.

Objective: The public health impact of substance use (SU) is substantial, with tobacco use and excessive drinking leading as causes of death in the USA. To address this growing epidemic, governments have implemented a range of SU-related policies. The NIH's Clinical & Translational Science Awards (CTSA) program, which aims to accelerate translation of research findings into health impact, may advance translation through its impact on the policy literature that informs policymakers, health professionals, and the public. Using innovative bibliometric tools, this study evaluates how CTSA-supported research published from 2006-2023 has influenced SU-related policy literature.

Method: The authors identified 135K publications that acknowledged CTSA support. Those publications were queried in the Overton Policy database, which indexes references to research publications in global policy literature.

Results: Thus far, CTSA-supported publications have been cited in 3,451 policy documents identified as SU-related according to Overton's Topics field. SU-related Topics were classified into top categories of: Tobacco, Opioids, Cannabis, Alcohol, and General/Other SU. Policy documents came from 321 organizations across 49 countries- often governments, health agencies, or political think tanks, including the World Health Organization, Guidelines in Pubmed Central, and the RAND Corporation. The authors present case illustrations of individual research publications that have had notable influence on SU policy.

Conclusions: By elucidating ways that supported publications are applied outside academia, bibliometrics offer a useful avenue for evaluating the translational impact of programs on specific areas of policy. Our findings showcase the impact that CTSA research has had on SU-related policy literature, a critical area of health policy.