Substance use in sexual minority youth: prevalence in an urban cohort

Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health

Research

Urs Hepp¹  Niklaus Stulz²  Denis Ribeaud³  Laura Bechtiger⁴  Lilly Shanahan⁴  Lydia Johnson-Ferguson⁵  Boris B. Quednow⁶  Manuel Eisner⁷  Joh von Felten⁸  Florian Vock⁹ 

[1] Department of Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry and Psychosomatic Medicine, University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland;Integrated Psychiatric Services Psychiatry Winterthur – Zürcher Unterland, Winterthur, Switzerland;Jacobs Center for Productive Youth Development, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland;Jacobs Center for Productive Youth Development, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland;Department of Psychology, Clinical and Developmental Psychology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland;Jacobs Center for Productive Youth Development, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland;Department of Psychology, Clinical and Developmental Psychology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland;Experimental and Clinical Pharmacopsychology, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital of the University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland;Jacobs Center for Productive Youth Development, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland;Experimental and Clinical Pharmacopsychology, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital of the University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland;Jacobs Center for Productive Youth Development, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland;Institute of Criminology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK;Milchjugend, LGBTQ+ Youth Organization, Zurich, Switzerland;Swiss AIDS Federation, Zurich, Switzerland;

关键词: Sexual minority youth;    Adolescents;    Drug use;    Addiction;    LGBTQ;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s13034-023-00657-0

 received in 2023-07-21, accepted in 2023-09-08,  发布年份 2023

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundLittle comparative data on substance use (SU) between sexual minority youth (SMY) and heterosexual youth (HET) is available. This study compares the prevalence of SU in an urban cohort between SMY and HET and evaluates demographic and psychosocial predictors of SU.MethodsData came from a prospective-longitudinal cohort study in an urban setting (N = 1297). SU and psychosocial variables such as internalizing symptoms, self-control, sensation-seeking, bullying-victimization, subjective stress, leisure activities, and peer influences were assessed with self-reports at age 17 and 20. SU was stratified by sex and sexual attraction, and the groups were compared using regression models, with demographic and psychosocial variables included as covariates.ResultsSMY- and HET-youth displayed differences in a number of psychosocial variables. Overall, SMY- and HET-youth differed in their 12-months prevalence of SU: At age 17, SMY-females had significantly higher rates of SU than HET-females for cannabis (aOR = 2.14, p = 0.04), ecstasy/MDMA (aOR = 4.29, p = 0.01), and hallucinogens (aOR = 5.59, p = 0.02). At age 20, SMY-females had significantly higher rates of SU than HET-females for tobacco (aOR = 2.06, p = 0.03), cannabis (aOR = 2.24, p = 0.004), ecstasy/MDMA (aOR = 3.93, p < 0.001), stimulants (aOR = 3.45, p = 0.002), and hallucinogens (aOR = 6.65, p < 0.001). SMY-males reported significantly lower rates for tobacco and cannabis than HET-males at age 17. At age 20, they reported significantly higher rates for the use of ecstasy/MDMA (aOR = 2.30, p = 0.04) and hallucinogens (aOR = 2.43, p = 0.03).ConclusionsGiven that psychosocial variables were significant covariates of SMY-status and SU, our results underline the importance of accounting for these when explaining differences in SU between adolescents. While differentiation by sex is established in most studies, such standardized comparisons are lacking with regards to sexual identities. But knowledge about SU of SMY is critical for designing effective interventions. This is especially true for SMY-females: Thus, SU in SMY-females early in life needs to be explored more thoroughly and addressed with adequate prevention measures.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© BioMed Central Ltd., part of Springer Nature 2023

【 图 表 】

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