Alcohol Use In Mexican-Americans By Nativity: The Role Of Ethnic Identity, Acculturation, And Acculturative Stress

The present study examined alcohol use disorder symptoms among Mexican-Americans. Participants consisted of a community-based sample of 237 Mexican-American adults living in the Midwest United States. The role of nativity status and cultural variables in alcohol use disorder symptoms was explored. Specifically, ethnic identity, acculturation, and acculturative stress were used to predict membership into high and low alcohol use disorder symptom groups among U.S.-and foreign-born Mexican-Americans. Additionally, gender, ethnic identity, and acculturative stress were tested as moderators in the relationship between acculturation and alcohol use disorder symptoms. Among U.S.-born participants, only ethnic identity was found to be predictive of alcohol use disorder symptoms, such that higher ethnic identity was related to fewer alcohol use disorder symptoms. Among foreign-born participants, ethnic identity was also predictive of few alcohol use disorder symptoms. Additionally, increased pressure against acculturation was predictive of higher alcohol use disorder symptoms for foreign-born participants. Among the sample as a whole, those with low Latino Orientation and high pressure against acculturation reported more alcohol use disorder symptoms. These results highlight the protective effect of ethnic identity and the need for further research that examines nativity status, acculturation, and specific acculturative stressors in regard to alcohol use disorder symptoms among Mexican-Americans

Alcohol use and alcohol-use disorders among older adults in India: a literature review.

OBJECTIVES: With changing attitudes to alcohol and an increasing life span in India, the prevalence of alcohol use and misuse in successive cohorts of older people is likely to increase. In this paper, we attempt to review the most recent evidence covering alcohol use and alcohol-use disorders in the Indian elderly. METHODS: PubMed, PsycINFO and Indmed databases were searched using relevant keywords. Papers meeting eligibility criteria were selected through a sequential process of screening title, abstract and full text. Data were extracted into Excel sheets. RESULTS: There was a dearth of pan-national studies. There were several methodological issues with many studies especially related to measurement. A substantial proportion of individuals above the age of 50 years are current consumers of alcohol and the prevalence is generally higher in urban compared to rural areas. Older women are generally likely to be alcohol abstainers. The general trend appears to be a reduction in current drinking among successive age cohorts over the age of 50. Alcohol consumption in the older adults is associated with educational status, health status, chronic morbidity, employment status, socioeconomic status, auditory/locomotor impairment and asthma. CONCLUSION: Alcohol use and misuse is a problem among the Indian older adults. With socio-demographic changes that will further increase longevity, this problem is likely to increase and policy-makers need to plan for it. Future research needs to improve validity and reliability in study methodology, as well as add to the current evidence base

Social and Cultural Contexts of Alcohol Use: Influences in a Social-Ecological Framework.

Alcohol use and misuse account for 3.3 million deaths every year, or 6 percent of all deaths worldwide. The harmful effects of alcohol misuse are far reaching and range from individual health risks, morbidity, and mortality to consequences for family, friends, and the larger society. This article reviews a few of the cultural and social influences on alcohol use and places individual alcohol use within the contexts and environments where people live and interact. It includes a discussion of macrolevel factors, such as advertising and marketing, immigration and discrimination factors, and how neighborhoods, families, and peers influence alcohol use. Specifically, the article describes how social and cultural contexts influence alcohol use/misuse and then explores future directions for alcohol research

Association studies of up to 1.2 million individuals yield new insights into the genetic etiology of tobacco and alcohol use.

Tobacco and alcohol use are leading causes of mortality that influence risk for many complex diseases and disorders1. They are heritable2,3 and etiologically related4,5 behaviors that have been resistant to gene discovery efforts6-11. In sample sizes up to 1.2 million individuals, we discovered 566 genetic variants in 406 loci associated with multiple stages of tobacco use (initiation, cessation, and heaviness) as well as alcohol use, with 150 loci evidencing pleiotropic association. Smoking phenotypes were positively genetically correlated with many health conditions, whereas alcohol use was negatively correlated with these conditions, such that increased genetic risk for alcohol use is associated with lower disease risk. We report evidence for the involvement of many systems in tobacco and alcohol use, including genes involved in nicotinic, dopaminergic, and glutamatergic neurotransmission. The results provide a solid starting point to evaluate the effects of these loci in model organisms and more precise substance use measures

Adolescent Initiation and Maintenance: An Analysis of the Roles of Self-Efficacy, Sensation Seeking, Parents, and Peers

Alcohol use among adolescents is a public health concern. Research of the predictors of adolescent alcohol initiation and use are necessary to better combat the negative impacts associated with alcohol use by youth. Due to social influences, adolescents develop a sense of self-efficacy and sensation seeking, which can guide them to get involved in early alcohol use. Both parents and peers have a great deal of authority to push one to have certain beliefs about drinking alcohol. The goal of this literature review is to better understand how the personality characteristics of self-efficacy and sensation seeking influence alcohol initiation and use by youths, and to identify how parents and peers influence one\u27s self-efficacy and sensation seeking characteristics in relation to alcohol use

Explaining the Frequency of Alcohol Consumption in a Conflict Zone: Jews and Palestinians in Israel

Experiencing stress and exposure to terrorism may have an adverse effect on health risk behaviors. Few studies have examined alcohol use among adults living in Israel under chronic, stressful terrorism-related conditions. In this study, we examined the relationships of demographics, past stressful events, and terrorism exposure to the frequency of alcohol use and the mediating roles of depressive and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. We used three waves of data from a 2007–2008 nationally representative sample of Jewish and Palestinian adults in Israel. We assessed past stressful events, in addition to direct and indirect exposures to terrorism. Results indicated that past stressful events and exposure to terrorism were not directly associated with alcohol use, but were indirectly associated and mediated by depressive and PTSD symptomology. Mental health symptoms were differentially associated with alcohol use. More frequent drinking was mediated by higher levels of depression, including for women and Palestinians; however, PTSD symptom severity was related to less frequent drinking. Mental health may play a prominent role in the frequency of alcohol use among adults exposed to terrorism in Israel. Alcohol use, as a coping mechanism, may differ by demographic characteristics (gender and ethnicity) and psychological symptomology for adults living in a conflict zone in Israel