Abstract
Background
International
research assessing differences in the prevalence of alcohol and other drug
(AOD) use among Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) and heterosexual
populations shows elevated prevalence rates of substance use among LGBT people.
To date no research has been published investigating these differences at a
population level among both men and women in Australia.
Methods
The 2013
National Drug Strategy Household Survey, a multistage stratified population
sample collecting data on AOD use in the Australian population over 14 years of
age, was analysed for differences between Gay and Bisexual (GB) men and
Lesbian/Gay and Bisexual (LGB) women and their heterosexual counterparts in: 1)
the prevalence of lifetime and past year tobacco and AOD use; 2) age of
initiation of tobacco and AOD use; and 3) frequency of alcohol and cannabis
use, and history of AOD treatment.
Results
There
were elevated rates of past year cannabis (22.4%), ecstasy (11.8%) and
methamphetamine (9.7%) use among GB men compared to heterosexual men (12.4%,
2.9% and 2.5%). LGB women also reported elevated rates of past year use
(tobacco - 23.7%; cannabis -29.0%) compared to heterosexual women (10.5% and
11.2%). LGB women initiated tobacco (15.2 years) and alcohol (15.5 years) at an
earlier age than heterosexual women (16.6 and 17.7 years), and were
significantly more likely to report daily alcohol consumption, and weekly or more frequent cannabis use.
Conclusions
These
findings are indicative of the need for more responsive and targeted AOD harm
reduction and treatment services for LGBT communities in Australia. Of concern
is the elevated risk among LGB women for earlier initiation of substance use,
and the development of problematic consumption patterns. Further research,
investigating the risk and protective factors for AOD use among LGB women is
warranted.
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Affiliations
National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC),
University of New South Wales, SYDNEY, NSW, 2052, AUSTRALIA
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