Adolescent Substance Use Following a Deadly U.S. Tornado Outbreak: A Population-Based Study of 2,000 Families
Abstract
Despite conceptual links between disaster
exposure and substance use, few studies have examined prevalence and risk
factors for adolescent substance use and abuse in large, population-based
samples affected by a recent natural disaster. We addressed this gap using a
novel address-based sampling methodology to interview adolescents and parents
who were affected by the 4th deadliest tornado outbreak in U.S.
HISTORY:
Postdisaster interviews were conducted
with 2,000 adolescent-parent dyads living within a 5-mile radius of the spring
2011 U.S. tornadoes. In addition to descriptive analyses to estimate
prevalence, hierarchical linear and logistic regression analyses were used to
examine a range of protective and risk factors for substance use and abuse.
Approximately 3% reported substance abuse since the tornado. Greater number of
prior traumatic events and older age emerged as consistent risk factors across
tobacco and alcohol use and substance abuse since the tornado.
Tornado incident
characteristics, namely, greater loss of services and resources after the
tornado and posttraumatic stress disorder since the tornado, were associated
with greater alcohol consumption. Service loss increased risk for binge
drinking, whereas, for substance abuse, posttraumatic stress disorder increased
risk and parent presence during the tornado decreased risk. Greater family
tornado exposure was associated with a greater number of cigarettes smoked in
female but not male teen participants.
Both trauma and non-trauma-related
factors are relevant to postdisaster substance abuse among adolescents. Future
research should examine the role of broader ecological systems in heightening
or curtailing substance use risk for adolescents following disaster exposure.
- 1 Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences , Medical University of South Carolina.
- 2 Department of Epidemiology , Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health.
- 3 Department of Psychiatry , Virginia Commonwealth University.
- 4 College of Nursing , Medical University of South Carolina and Ralph H. Johnson VAMC.
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