Age- and Sex-Varying Associations Between Depressive Symptoms and Substance Use from Modal Ages 35 to 55 in a National Sample of U.S. Adults.

It is important to examine normative age-related change in substance use risk factors across the lifespan, with research focusing on middle adulthood particularly needed. The current study examined time-varying associations between depressive symptoms and alcohol, cigarette, and marijuana use from modal ages 35 to 55 in a national sample of US adults, overall and by sex. Data were obtained from 11,147 individuals in the longitudinal Monitoring the Future study. Participants were in 12th grade (modal age 18) in 1976-1982 and (for the data reported in this study) were surveyed again at modal ages 35 (in 1993-1999), 40, 45, 50, and 55 (in 2013-2019). Weighted time-varying effect modeling was used to examine age-related change in associations among depressive symptoms, any and heavy use of cigarettes, alcohol, and marijuana. Across midlife, greater depressive symptoms were associated with decreased odds of any alcohol use during the 40 s and 50 s, but with increased odds of binge drinking from ages 35-40, and-at most ages-any and pack + cigarette use and any and frequent marijuana use. The association between depressive symptoms and substance use was generally similar for men and women. Results highlight the increased risk for binge drinking, smoking, and marijuana with higher levels of depressive symptoms and underscore the importance of screening and interventions for depressive symptoms and substance use in midlife.

Alcohol Use Disorder Symptoms Reported during Midlife: Results from the Monitoring the Future Study among US Adults at Modal Ages 50, 55, and 60.

BACKGROUND: The extent to which adolescent substance use is associated with alcohol use disorder (AUD) symptoms in midlife is not yet fully explored. METHODS: Longitudinal data from the national Monitoring the Future study was used. The sample included 11,830 12th graders (1976-1987) who were surveyed again at modal ages 50 (37.8%), 55 (46.3%), or 60 (15.8%) in 2008-2019. Approximately 48.7% were male; 81.5% identified as non-Hispanic White. Weighted logistic and multinomial logistic regressions were used to examine associations between past 30-day use of cigarettes, marijuana, and alcohol at age 18, sociodemographics, and a midlife AUD symptom outcome (coded as non-drinking, drinking without AUD [endorsed ≤1 criterion], or AUD symptoms [endorsed 2+ criteria]). RESULTS: Prevalence of midlife AUD symptoms was 27.1%. Higher relative risk of reporting AUD symptoms (vs. drinking without AUD) was associated with age 18 substance use (any cigarette use [vs. no use], any marijuana use [vs. no use], binge drinking [vs. both no use and drinking at less than binge levels]), being male (vs. female), being non-Hispanic White (vs. non-Hispanic Black), and having a 4-year college degree. Higher relative risk of reporting non-drinking (vs. drinking without AUD) was associated with no 30-day alcohol use at age 18, being non-Hispanic Black or non-Hispanic other (vs. non-Hispanic White), and not having a 4-year college degree. CONCLUSIONS: Findings suggest substance use at age 18 has meaningful associations with midlife AUD symptoms. Dissemination of prevention and intervention efforts in adolescence and early adulthood may be important for reducing hazardous midlife drinking.

Drinking Motives and Drinking Consequences across Days: Differences and Similarities between Moderate, Binge, and High-Intensity Drinking.

BACKGROUND: The current study examined the extent to which within-person variation in drinking motives differentiates moderate, binge, and high-intensity drinking; and independent associations of motives and drinking intensity with alcohol use consequences in a sample of young adult drinkers from across the United States. METHODS: Participants were past 30-day drinkers in the U.S. nationally representative Monitoring the Future 12th grade sample in 2018, who also reported alcohol use during a 14-day data collection burst 1 year later (N = 484 people, mean age 19.3 [SD 0.40], 43% female; N = 1042 drinking days) as part of the Young Adult Daily Life Study in 2019. Weighted multilevel modeling estimated within- and between-person associations of drinking motives, drinking intensity (i.e., moderate [women 1-3, men 1-4 drinks], binge [women 4-7, men 5-9 drinks], and high-intensity drinking [women 8+, men 10+ drinks]), and number of positive and negative alcohol consequences. RESULTS: On days participants reported greater enhancement and social motives, they were more likely to engage in high-intensity (vs. binge) drinking and binge (vs. moderate) drinking and experience more positive alcohol consequences. On days participants reported greater enhancement and coping motives, they experienced more negative alcohol consequences. Binge (vs. moderate) drinking on a given day was associated with more positive and negative alcohol consequences; high-intensity (vs. binge) drinking on a given day was associated with more negative alcohol consequences that day. Moderation analyses indicated that social motives were associated with high-intensity (vs. binge) drinking only among college students. CONCLUSIONS: Stronger drinking motives on a given day were associated with drinking intensity (enhancement and social motives) and negative consequences (enhancement and coping). High-intensity (vs. binge or moderate) drinking was associated with more negative consequences but not more positive consequences. These results underscore that high-intensity drinking and consequences vary across days and time-varying, occasion-specific risks such as current motivational context are appropriate targets for intervention.

Consideration of an upper-bound continuous maximum drinks measure for adolescent binge and high-intensity drinking prevalence.

BACKGROUND: The degree to which binge and high-intensity drinking prevalence estimates vary from fixed threshold frequency and continuous maximum drinks measures is unknown. The current study compared prevalence estimates for adolescent binge and high-intensity drinking (5+ drinks, 10+ drinks, respectively) and sex-specific thresholds using fixed threshold frequency and continuous maximum drinks measures. METHODS: Data were obtained from 7911 respondents participating in the 2018 and 2019 nationally representative Monitoring the Future 12th-grade surveys. Comparisons of frequency prevalence (e.g., any occasions of 5+ drinking using the frequency measure) versus maximum drinks prevalence (e.g., reporting 5 or more drinks using the maximum number of drinks measure) were made using all respondents and then separately within males and females. RESULTS: Among the sample overall and within sex, binge drinking estimates from the 5+ frequency prevalence and 5+ maximum drinks prevalence measures evidenced overlapping confidence intervals (estimates were slightly higher for frequency prevalence); similar results were observed for high-intensity drinking 10+ frequency prevalence and 10+ maximum drinks prevalence. For example, among the sample overall, 5+ frequency prevalence was 11.4% [95% CI 10.3, 12.6]; 5+ maximum drinks prevalence was 10.7% [9.6, 11.8]; 10+ frequency prevalence was 5.1% [4.4, 5.8]; and 10+ maximum drinks prevalence was 4.1% [3.5, 4.7]. Using sex-specific thresholds (i.e., 4+ drinks for females and 5+ drinks for males), binge frequency and maximum drinks levels also had overlapping confidence intervals. Binge drinking prevalence estimates for females were approximately 1.5 times higher using sex-specific (4+) versus universal (5+) thresholds. CONCLUSIONS: In this nationally representative sample of 12th-grade students, prevalence levels for 5+ and 10+ drinking did not differ significantly when using frequency versus maximum drinks measures. Among females, binge drinking prevalence was higher using sex-specific versus universal thresholds. Both the frequency and maximum drinks measures provided comparable estimates of binge and high-intensity drinking prevalence among older adolescents.

Changes in the Order of Cigarette and Marijuana Initiation and Associations with Cigarette Use, Nicotine Vaping, and Marijuana Use: U.S. 12th Grade Students, 2000-2019.

This study (a) examined changes in marijuana and cigarette initiation sequencing and (b) considered implications of such changes for prevention efforts by examining associations between initiation sequencing and current adolescent substance use. Analyses used 2000-2019 cross-sectional data from the national Monitoring the Future (MTF) study (78,252 U.S. 12th grade students). Models examined trends in six distinct patterns of initiation order, and multivariable associations between order of initiation and 30-day cigarette and marijuana use prevalence, cigarette and marijuana use frequency among users, and nicotine and marijuana vaping prevalence. While the percentage of students initiating neither cigarettes nor marijuana increased, increases also were observed in marijuana-only initiation (the fastest-growing pattern) and initiation of marijuana before cigarettes; these increases were accompanied by a significant decrease in cigarette-only initiation. Cigarette use prevalence and frequency were highest among students initiating cigarettes before marijuana; marijuana use prevalence and frequency were highest among students initiating marijuana before cigarettes. Cigarette and marijuana prevalence, as well as marijuana frequency, were lowest among students initiating only a single substance. Nicotine vaping was less prevalent among students initiating a single substance versus both substances, but no significant differences were observed in nicotine vaping prevalence between those initiating only cigarettes versus only marijuana. Implications of these findings for prevention efforts are discussed in the frameworks of both the common liability model and route of administration model.

U.S. adolescent alcohol use by race/ethnicity: Consumption and perceived need to reduce/stop use.

Understanding racial/ethnic drinking patterns and service provision preferences is critical for deciding how best to use limited alcohol prevention, intervention, and treatment resources. We used nationally representative data from 150,727 U.S. high school seniors from 2005 to 2016 to examine differences in a range of alcohol use behaviors and the felt need to reduce or stop alcohol use based on detailed racial/ethnic categories, both before and after controlling for key risk/protective factors. Native students reported particularly high use but corresponding high felt need to reduce/stop use. White and dual-endorsement students reported high use but low felt need to stop/reduce alcohol use.

Shifting Age of Peak Binge Drinking Prevalence: Historical Changes in Normative Trajectories Among Young Adults Aged 18 to 30.

BACKGROUND: This study examined the extent to which the developmental pattern of prevalence of binge drinking in the past 2 weeks from ages 18 through 30 has changed across 29 cohorts of U.S. young adults, and whether the changes differed by gender. METHODS: Analyses used national longitudinal data from 58,019 12th-grade students (from graduating high school classes 1976 to 2004) participating in the Monitoring the Future study followed through modal age 30 (with age 29/30 data collected from 1987 to 2016). Weighted time-varying effect modeling was used to model cohort group differences in age-related patterns of binge drinking. RESULTS: The age of peak binge drinking prevalence increased across cohorts (from age 20 in 1976 to 1985 to 22 in 1996 to 2004 for women, and from 21 in 1976 to 1985 to 23 in 1996 to 2004 for men). Historical change in the developmental pattern of binge drinking across all ages of young adulthood differed for men and women. Even after controlling for key covariates, women in the more recent cohort group reported significantly higher binge drinking prevalence than women in earlier cohorts from ages 21 through 30. Men in the more recent cohort group reported higher binge drinking prevalence at ages 25 to 26, but prevalence levels then converged to those seen in earlier cohort groups by age 30. CONCLUSIONS: An older age of peak binge drinking and a decreased rate of decline in the prevalence of binge drinking in later young adulthood among more recent cohorts have resulted in an extension of individual and societal risks associated with binge drinking, particularly for women, across young adulthood. High-risk alcohol use prevention efforts are needed throughout at least the third decade of life.

Simultaneous Alcohol and Marijuana Use Among Young Adult Drinkers: Age-Specific Changes in Prevalence from 1977 to 2016.

BACKGROUND: The overall prevalence of U.S. young adult alcohol use has decreased, but little is known about historical change in related behaviors such as simultaneous alcohol and marijuana (SAM) use that may increase alcohol-related risks and societal costs. The purpose of this paper was to examine historical change in SAM use prevalence among U.S. young adult alcohol users from 1977 to 2016, and consider the extent to which observed historical change in SAM use among alcohol users reflects co-occurring change in marijuana use during these years. METHODS: Data on past 12-month alcohol, marijuana, and SAM use at up to 6 modal ages (19/20, 21/22, 23/24, 25/26, 27/28, and 29/30) were collected from 11,789 individuals (45.0% men) participating in the Monitoring the Future panel study. Annual prevalence estimates within modal age group were obtained; historical SAM use trends among alcohol and marijuana users were estimated. RESULTS: From 2014 to 2016, SAM use was reported by approximately 30% of alcohol users aged 19/20 and 21/22, and 20 to 25% of alcohol users aged 23/24 through 29/30. Since the mid-1990s, age-specific historical trends in SAM use prevalence among alcohol users followed 1 of 4 patterns: significant increase followed by oscillating increases/decreases (at modal age 19/20), consistent and significant increases (at modal ages 21/22, 23/24, and 25/26), stability followed by increase (at modal ages 27/28), or stability (at modal ages 29/30). In contrast, SAM use trends among marijuana users primarily reflected stability, with some evidence of a decrease across time at modal ages 19/20 and 23/24. Historical change in SAM prevalence among alcohol users was strongly and positively correlated with changes in overall marijuana use prevalence. CONCLUSIONS: A growing proportion of early and mid-young adult alcohol users reported SAM use, with the highest risk among those in the early years of young adulthood. Young adult SAM use may continue to increase in proportion to the degree that young adult marijuana use continues to increase.

Patterns of simultaneous and concurrent alcohol and marijuana use among adolescents.

BACKGROUND: Alcohol and marijuana are the most commonly used substances among adolescents but little is known about patterns of co-use. OBJECTIVES: This study examined patterns of concurrent (not overlapping) and simultaneous (overlapping) use of alcohol and marijuana among adolescents. METHODS: Data from US-national samples of 12th graders (N = 84,805, 48.4% female) who participated in the Monitoring the Future study from 1976 to 2016 and who used alcohol and/or marijuana in the past 12 months were used to identify latent classes of alcohol use, marijuana use, and simultaneous alcohol and marijuana (SAM) use. RESULTS: A four-class solution indicated four patterns of use among adolescents: (1) Simultaneous alcohol and marijuana (SAM) use with binge drinking and recent marijuana use (SAM-Heavier Use; 11.2%); (2) SAM use without binge drinking and with recent marijuana use (SAM-Lighter Use; 21.6%); (3) Marijuana use and alcohol use but no SAM use (Concurrent Use; 10.7%); and (4) Alcohol use but no marijuana or SAM use (Alcohol-Only Use; 56.4%). Membership in either SAM use class was associated with a higher likelihood of truancy, evenings out, and use of illicit drugs other than marijuana. SAM-Heavier Use, compared to SAM-Lighter Use, class members were more likely to report these behaviors and be male, and less likely to have college plans. CONCLUSIONS: Among 12th graders who use both alcohol and marijuana, the majority use simultaneously, although not all use heavily. Given the recognized increased public health risks associated with simultaneous use, adolescent prevention programming should include focus on particular risks of simultaneous use.

Age-Specific Prevalence of Binge and High-Intensity Drinking Among U.S. Young Adults: Changes from 2005 to 2015.

BACKGROUND: This study examined changes during the past decade, from 2005 to 2015, in binge and high-intensity drinking in 7 separate age groups of U.S. 12th graders and young adults. METHODS: National longitudinal data (N = 6,711) from Monitoring the Future were used to examine trends in consuming 5+, 10+, and 15+ drinks on the same occasion in the past 2 weeks from ages 18 to 29/30 overall and by gender. Results were compared with trends in past 12-month and 30-day alcohol use for the same age groups. RESULTS: Between 2005 and 2015, binge (5+) and high-intensity drinking (10+, 15+) generally decreased for individuals in their early 20s, remained somewhat stable for individuals in their mid-20s, and increased for individuals at the end of young adulthood (age 29/30). The observed historical trends in binge and high-intensity drinking were similar to those for past 12-month and past 30-day alcohol use for those aged 18 to 20, but diverged for most other age groups in young adulthood. Trends were generally similar for men and women, except that the increase in prevalence began earlier in young adulthood for women than for men. CONCLUSIONS: Binge and high-intensity drinking among U.S. 12th graders and young adults are dynamic phenomena. Prevention and intervention efforts aimed at reducing the harms resulting from 5+, 10+, and 15+ drinking should acknowledge and focus on differences in trends in these behaviors by age and gender.

Discontinuous Patterns of Cigarette Smoking From Ages 18 to 50 in the United States: A Repeated-Measures Latent Class Analysis.

INTRODUCTION: Effective cigarette smoking prevention and intervention programming is enhanced by accurate understanding of developmental smoking pathways across the life span. This study investigated within-person patterns of cigarette smoking from ages 18 to 50 among a US national sample of high school graduates, focusing on identifying ages of particular importance for smoking involvement change. AIMS AND METHODS: Using data from approximately 15,000 individuals participating in the longitudinal Monitoring the Future study, trichotomous measures of past 30-day smoking obtained at 11 time points were modeled using repeated-measures latent class analyses. Sex differences in latent class structure and membership were examined. RESULTS: Twelve latent classes were identified: three characterized by consistent smoking patterns across age (no smoking; smoking < pack per day; smoking pack + per day); three showing uptake to a higher category of smoking across age; four reflecting successful quit behavior by age 50; and two defined by discontinuous shifts between smoking categories. The same latent class structure was found for both males and females, but membership probabilities differed between sexes. Although evidence of increases or decreases in smoking behavior was observed at virtually all ages through 35, 21/22 and 29/30 appeared to be particularly key for smoking category change within class. CONCLUSIONS: This examination of latent classes of cigarette smoking among a national US longitudinal sample of high school graduates from ages 18 to 50 identified unique patterns and critical ages of susceptibility to change in smoking category within class. Such information may be of particular use in developing effective smoking prevention and intervention programming. IMPLICATIONS: This study examined cigarette smoking among a national longitudinal US sample of high school graduates from ages 18 to 50 and identified distinct latent classes characterized by patterns of movement between no cigarette use, light-to-moderate smoking, and the conventional definition of heavy smoking at 11 time points via repeated-measures latent class analysis. Membership probabilities for each smoking class were estimated, and critical ages of susceptibility to change in smoking behaviors were identified.

High-intensity and simultaneous alcohol and marijuana use among high school seniors in the United States.

BACKGROUND: Simultaneous alcohol and marijuana (SAM) use poses threats to health, particularly among adolescents. These risks would be exacerbated to the extent that high-intensity drinking (e.g., 10+ drinks in a row) and marijuana use (e.g., 1+ joints per day) are associated with a higher likelihood of SAM use. The current study examines the extent to which the intensity of alcohol use and of marijuana use are associated with adolescent SAM use prevalence, and whether associations remain after controlling for key covariates known to associate with both alcohol and marijuana use; it identifies alcohol and marijuana use intensity levels associated with the highest risk of adolescent SAM use. METHODS: Data come from nationally representative samples of US 12th graders who participated in the Monitoring the Future study from 2005 to 2014 (N = 24,203 respondents; 48.4% boys, 51.6% girls). RESULTS: SAM use during the past year was reported by 20% of 12th graders overall. SAM use prevalence was strongly and positively associated with alcohol and marijuana use intensity even after controlling for covariates. High school seniors at highest risk for engaging in SAM use were those who reported 10+ drinks and those smoking at least 1 joint/day. Approximately 60% of those who had 10-14 or 15+ drinks in a row during the past 2 weeks and 76%-80% of those who had 1 or 2+ joints per day on average during the past 30 days reported SAM use. CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest that high school seniors who consume high quantities of alcohol and marijuana are very likely to consume these substances so that their effects overlap.

High-Intensity Drinking Among Young Adults in the United States: Prevalence, Frequency, and Developmental Change.

BACKGROUND: This study is the first to examine the developmental course of high-intensity drinking (i.e., consuming 10+ drinks in a row) across late adolescence and the transition to adulthood. METHODS: National longitudinal data (N = 3,718) from Monitoring the Future were used to examine trajectories of 10+ high-intensity drinking from age 18 through 25/26 overall and across sociodemographic subgroups; results were compared with similar analysis of 5+ binge drinking trajectories. RESULTS: Results document that 10+ drinkers consume not just a greater quantity of alcohol on a given drinking occasion, but also engage in 5+ drinking more frequently than drinkers who do not report having 10 or more drinks. Developmental patterns for 10+ and 5+ drinking were similar, with peak frequencies reported at age 21/22. Greater peaks in both 10+ and 5+ drinking were documented among men and among college attenders, compared with women and nonattenders, respectively. However, there was a steeper decline in 10+ drinking after age 21/22, indicating that risk for consumption of 10 or more drinks in a row is more clearly focused on the early 20s. Patterns of developmental change in both behaviors were driven largely by college students: No significant age-related change in 10+ drinking was observed among men and women who did not go to college, and no significant age-related change in 5+ drinking was observed among female nonattenders. CONCLUSIONS: Findings underscore the importance of recognizing high-intensity drinkers as a unique high-risk group, and that college attendance is associated with particularly strong peaks in the developmental course of high-intensity drinking.

Intoxication and binge and high-intensity drinking among US young adults in their mid-20s.

BACKGROUND: Alcohol use is a key risk factor for young adult mortality and disease, but limited research has focused on high-risk alcohol use among individuals moving from early young adulthood into building and maintaining an initial structure of adult life. This study estimated the prevalence of a range of alcohol use behaviors among US young adults aged 25/26, examined evidence for historical change in prevalence rates, and estimated associations between alcohol use and key demographic, substance use, and adult social role characteristics. METHODS: Data were obtained from 3542 individuals selected for follow-up from the nationally representative 12th-grade student Monitoring the Future study. Respondents self-reported alcohol use behaviors at age 25/26 during calendar years 2005-2014. RESULTS: Two fifths (39.9%) of young adults aged 25/26 reported being intoxicated at least once in the past 30 days; 25.6% reported usually experiencing a sustained high of 3 or more hours when drinking alcohol. Past-2-week binge drinking (5+ drinks in a row) was reported by 36.3% of respondents. Past-2-week high-intensity drinking (10+ drinks in a row) was reported by 12.4%. These age 25/26 alcohol use prevalence rates remained stable over the 10 years of data examined, in contrast to significant declines over historical time in alcohol prevalence rates among these same individuals at age 18. High-risk drinking was particularly associated with being male, white, unmarried, employed, a nonparent, and an alcohol user before finishing high school. CONCLUSIONS: Among US young adults in their mid-20s, alcohol use was highly normative and frequently included participation in high-risk drinking behaviors. High-risk alcohol use prevention approaches developed specifically to reach young adults in their mid-20s are needed, as well as efforts to increase proactive clinician screening to identify young adults participating in high-risk alcohol use.

Foods and beverages offered in US public secondary schools through the National School Lunch Program from 2011-2013: Early evidence of improved nutrition and reduced disparities.

OBJECTIVE: To present data on trends in foods and beverages offered through the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) in public middle and high schools in the years immediately preceding and following implementation of new NSLP standards. METHOD: From 2011 to 2013, primary data collection through the annual Youth, Education, and Society study involved use of mailed questionnaires to obtain data on NSLP meals from schools attended by nationally representative samples of US 8(th), 10(th), and 12(th) grade students (N=792 middle schools and 751 high schools). Each school was weighted to represent the percentage of target grade students enrolled, thus allowing analyses examining changes over time in the percentage of students enrolled in (attending) schools with specified NSLP measure outcomes, as well as disparities in NSLP measures based on school characteristics. RESULTS: Significantly more US secondary students attended schools with specified NSLP measures in 2013 than in 2011; increases were observed at both middle and high school levels. Increase rates for some NSLP measures were moderated by school characteristics; where this was the case, moderating associations decreased prior NSLP nutrition environment disparities that were especially evident in smaller schools and schools with higher percentages of minority students. CONCLUSION: Meaningful improvements have been made in the nutritional content of NSLP meals offered to US secondary students; these improvements have reduced prior NSLP meal disparities associated with school characteristics. Schools will need continued help with implementation and compliance monitoring in order to have the best opportunity to improve the nutrition environments for US students.

Trends in coping reasons for marijuana use among U.S. adolescents from 2016 to 2022.

OBJECTIVE: This study examines historical trends in coping reasons for marijuana use among adolescents (1976-2022) and explores sociodemographic variations in recent years (2016-2022). METHOD: Data from U.S. national samples of 12th grade adolescents in the Monitoring the Future (MTF) study were used to examine long-term trends (1976-2022, N = 43,237) and recent differences by sociodemographic characteristics (2016-2022, N = 3,816). Measures included marijuana use, coping reasons for use, and sociodemographic characteristics. RESULTS: The most prevalent coping reason across time was "relax," endorsed by 52.9% of past 12-month users. Coping reasons mostly exhibited significant increases over time. Sociodemographic factors were associated with coping reasons. Females had higher odds of using marijuana to escape problems and get through the day (vs. males). Black respondents were more likely to use marijuana to get through the day, and Hispanic respondents were more likely to use to relax (vs. White respondents). Those with lower (vs. higher) parental education were more likely to use due to anger/frustration and to escape problems. Adolescents who used marijuana frequently (vs. less often) had higher odds of endorsing all coping reasons. There was no robust evidence of interactions between sociodemographic characteristics and year. CONCLUSIONS: Results indicate a consistent increase in coping reasons for adolescent marijuana use over time, with variations based on sociodemographic characteristics. The findings highlight the importance of understanding subpopulations of adolescents who have higher risk of coping-related marijuana use.

Historical Trends in Cannabis Use among U.S. Adults Aged 19-55, 2013-2021.

OBJECTIVE: The current study used U.S. national data to examine trends in cannabis use from 2013-2021, focusing on changes in cannabis prevalence during young and middle adulthood, and whether trends differed by sociodemographic characteristics. METHOD: Data from 2013-2021 from 21,133 respondents aged 19-30 and 29,898 aged 35-55 in the national Monitoring the Future panel study (followed since they were in 12th grade in 1976-2020) were used to model historical trends in cannabis prevalence (any 12-month use, any 30-day use, and near-daily use [20+ occasions in the past 30 days]). RESULTS: Prevalence of 12-month, 30-day, and near-daily cannabis use significantly increased from 2013-2021 for both young and middle adults. Trends for all three behaviors indicated either consistent linear increases or two-slope increases where the slope estimate was larger in more recent years. Historical increases in 12-month and 30-day use were similar for young and middle adulthood; the historical increase in near-daily use among middle adults had some evidence for a possible pandemic-related deviation. Historical trends did not differ by race/ethnicity or college degree. Trends for 12-month and 30-day use differed by sex, with females increasing more than males over time, especially during middle adulthood. CONCLUSIONS: Significant increases in the prevalence of cannabis use have occurred over the past decade for young and middle adults across sociodemographic groups, with some indication that near-daily use increased among middle adults at the onset of the pandemic. Although males continue to have higher prevalence than females, the gap has narrowed with greater increases in cannabis use among women.

Effects of tobacco-related media campaigns on smoking among 20-30-year-old adults: longitudinal data from the USA.

OBJECTIVE: Young adults in the USA have one of the highest smoking prevalence rates of any age group, and young adulthood is a critical time period of targeting by the tobacco industry. The authors examined relationships between potential exposure to tobacco-related media campaigns from a variety of sponsors and 2-year smoking change measures among a longitudinal sample of US adults aged 20-30 years from 2001 to 2008. METHODS: Self-report data were collected from a longitudinal sample of 12,931 US young adults from age 20 to 30. These data were merged with tobacco-related advertising exposure data from Nielsen Media Research. Two-year measures of change in smoking were regressed on advertising exposures. RESULTS: Two-year smoking uptake was unrelated to advertising exposure. The odds of quitting among all smokers and reduction among daily smokers in the 2 years between the prior and current survey were positively related to anti-tobacco advertising, especially potential exposure levels of 104-155 ads over the past 24 months. Tobacco company advertising (including corporate image and anti-smoking) and pharmaceutical industry advertising were unrelated to quitting or reduction. CONCLUSION: Continued support for sustained, public health-based well-funded anti-tobacco media campaigns may help reduce tobacco use among young adults.

Alcohol use contexts (social settings, drinking games/specials, and locations) as predictors of high-intensity drinking on a given day among U.S. young adults.

BACKGROUND: This study examined whether variability in young adult drinking social settings, drinking games/drink price specials, and locations differentiated daily high-intensity drinking (HID) likelihood; whether contexts varied by legal drinking age and college status (attending a 4-year college full-time); and whether legal drinking age and college status moderated drinking context/intensity associations. METHODS: Participants (n = 818 people, 46.3% female) were part of the Young Adult Daily Life Study in 2019 to 2022. They were originally selected because they were past 30-day drinkers from the 2018 U.S. national probability Monitoring the Future 12th grade sample and because they reported one or more days of alcohol use during 14-day data collection bursts across the following 4 years (n = 5080 drinking days). Weighted multilevel modeling was used to estimate drinking context/intensity associations. Drinking intensity was defined as moderate (females 1 to 3, males 1 to 4 drinks), binge (4 to 7, 5 to 9 drinks), or HID (8+, 10+ drinks). Models controlled for other within-person (weekend, historical time period) and between-person (sex and race/ethnicity) covariates. RESULTS: Contexts differentiating HID and binge drinking days included drinking with large groups, strangers, pregaming, drinking games, and more drinking locations. Legal drinking age was associated with lower odds of free drinks but greater odds of drinking at bars/restaurants. College status was associated with lower odds of drinking alone or free drinks, but greater odds of drinking with friends, large groups, pregaming, drinking games, discounted price drinks, and at bars/restaurants, parties, and more drinking locations. Legal drinking age and college status moderated some context-intensity associations. CONCLUSIONS: Social settings, pregaming, drinking games, and drinking at more locations were associated with increased risk of HID on a given day. Legal drinking age and college status were associated with specific drinking contexts and moderated some context/intensity associations. Incorporating the contexts associated with HID into interventions may help to reduce HID and related consequences in young adults.