Are Alcohol-Related Disparities Between Sexual Minority and Heterosexual Youth Decreasing?

Details

• Personal Author:
  Fish JN ; Porta CM ; Russell ST ; Saewyc EM ; Watson RJ
• Description:
  Background and Aims: Although sexual orientation-related alcohol use disparities are well established, researchers have not identified whether disparities are diminishing as societal attitudes towards lesbian/gay and bisexual (LGB) people become more accepting. We examined changes in four alcohol-related disparities between heterosexual and LGB youth from 1998 to 2013 by (1) estimating the prevalence of these behaviors; (2) estimating disparities in alcohol-related outcomes between heterosexual and LGB youth within each wave year; and (3) testing whether the degree of difference in alcohol-related disparities between heterosexual and LGB youth has changed. Design: Logistic regression models and year × sexual orientation interactions with repeated, cross-sectional, provincially representative data. Setting: British Columbia, Canada. Participants: Students (ages 12-19) from the 1998 (n = 22 858), 2003 (n = 29 323), 2008 (n = 25 254) and 2013 (n = 21 938) British Columbia Adolescent Health Survey (total n = 99 373, 48.7% male, mean age = 14.84). Measurements: We modeled age-adjusted differences in life-time alcohol use, age of onset, past 30-day drinking and past 30-day heavy episodic drinking between heterosexual and three subgroups of sexual minority youth (i.e. mostly heterosexual, bisexual and lesbian/gay). Findings: Generally, alcohol use declined for all youth, although less so among LGB youth [average adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 0.58 and aOR = 0.53 for heterosexual males and females and aOR = 0.71 and aOR = 0.57 for sexual minority males and females, respectively). Within-year comparisons demonstrated elevated rates of alcohol use among LGB compared with heterosexual youth for each of the four survey years, especially among females. Findings indicate few changes over time; however, results show an increase in risky alcohol use from 1998 to 2013 among mostly heterosexual (aOR = 1.58 for life-time alcohol use, aOR = 1.58 for 30-day alcohol use and aOR = 1.34 for 30-day heavy episodic drinking), and bisexual (aOR = 1.95 for life-time alcohol use) females. Conclusion: Despite the general decline in the prevalence of alcohol use among young people in Canada since 1998, lesbian/gay and bisexual youth in Canada continue to show elevated rates of alcohol use compared with heterosexual youth. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Adolescent Alcoholic Beverages Behavior Healthcare Disparities Mental Health Nervous System Occupational Health Safety Sex Characteristics Substance-Related Disorders
• Keywords:
  Adolescents Alcohol Author Keywords: Adolescents Disparities Gender Factors Health Disparities LGB Mental Health School Health Sex Factors Sexual Minority Substance Abuse Surveys Teenagers

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• ISSN:
  0965-2140
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Connecticut ; Minnesota ; OSHA Region 1 ; OSHA Region 5 ; OSHA Region 6 ; Texas
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  112
• Issue:
  11
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20064174
• Citation:
  Addiction 2017 Nov; 112(11):1931-1941
• Contact Point Address:
  Jessica N. Fish, Population Research Center, University of Texas at Austin, 305 East 23rd Street, Stop G1800, Austin, TX 78712, USA
• Email:
  jessica.fish@utexas.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2018
• Performing Organization:
  University of Minnesota Twin Cities
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Addiction
• End Date:
  20250630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:07af918765c33a796c804451a5fdd7c4246877a1d9a10b0b69fc4e2565f6341859050583afb4bd7b4c18faa0c693b3e2210fcb38c0e53d1d2dfea47a502b3502
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/222680/cdc_222680_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 251.42 KB ]