Early Adolescent Substance Use Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Longitudinal Survey in the ABCD Study Cohort.
- Authors
- Pelham, William E; Tapert, Susan F; Gonzalez, Marybel Robledo; McCabe, Connor J; Lisdahl, Krista M; Alzueta, Elisabet; Baker, Fiona C; Breslin, Florence J; Dick, Anthony Steven; Dowling, Gayathri J; Guillaume, Mathieu; Hoffman, Elizabeth A; Marshall, Andrew T; McCandliss, Bruce D; Sheth, Chandni S; Sowell, Elizabeth R; Thompson, Wesley K; Van Rinsveld, Amandine M; Wade, Natasha E; Brown, Sandra A
- Year
- 2021
- Journal
- The Journal of adolescent health : official publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine
- PMID
- 34452728
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2021.06.015
- PMCID
- PMC8768966
PURPOSE: Evaluate changes in early adolescent substance use during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic using a prospective, longitudinal, nationwide cohort. METHODS: Participants were enrolled in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study. A total of 7,842 youth (mean age = 12.4 years, range = 10.5-14.6) at 21 study sites across the U.S. completed a three-wave assessment of substance use between May and August 2020. Youth reported whether they had used alcohol, nicotine, cannabis, or other substances in the past 30 days. Data were linked to prepandemic surveys that the same youth had completed in the years 2018-2020, before the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic. RESULTS: Past-30-day substance use remained stable in the 6 months since stay-at-home orders were first issued in U.S. states/counties; was primarily episodic (1-2 days in the past month); and was typically limited to a single substance. Using pretest/posttest and age-period designs, we found that compared to before the pandemic, fewer youth were using alcohol and more youth were using nicotine or misusing prescription drugs. During the pandemic, youth were more likely to use substances when they were more stressed by pandemic-related uncertainty; their family experienced material hardship; their parents used alcohol or drugs; or they experienced greater depression or anxiety. Neither engagement in social distancing nor worry about COVID-19 infection was associated with substance use. Several risk factors were stronger among older (vs. younger) adolescents. CONCLUSIONS: Among youth in early adolescence, advent of the COVID-19 pandemic was associated with decreased use of alcohol and increased use of nicotine and misuse of prescription drugs.
Changes in rate of youth substance use from before to during the pandemic. Note. Based on subsample of youth (n = 1079). “Before pandemic” measurement from September 2019-January 2020. “During pandemic” measurement from COVID surveys, May-June 2020. Asterisks next to labels for alcohol, nicotine, and prescription drugs indicate that the changes from before pandemic to during pandemic were statistically significant (p < .05) for these substances. Use of “any substance” was collapsed across use of alcohol, nicotine, cannabis, prescription drugs, and inhalants. Analysis could not be conducted for vaping nicotine because prepandemic assessments did not measure smoking and vaping separately.
Associations between correlates measured before and during pandemic and youth use of any substance during pandemic. Note. Dots indicate estimated odds ratios, and horizontal bands indicate 95% confidence intervals (confidence intervals that exclude the value 1 indicate that the association was statistically significant, p < .05). Odds ratios were estimated in logistic regressions that covaried youth age and survey wave (Table S4). Odds ratios greater than one indicate positive associations; odds ratios lower than one indicate negative associations. Nondichotomous variables were rescaled to standard deviation units. For racial/ethnic identity, White youth served as reference level, and “other racial/ethnic identity” category included youth of Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, Alaskan Native, American Indian, and multiple races [23]. For schooling status/format, not completing any schooling served as reference level.
Statistically significant correlates of youth substance use during the pandemic. Note. Each panel depicts rate of youth substance use as a function of a different correlate. Association between correlate and youth use of any substance in past 30 days was statistically significant (p < .05) in all instances.
Associations with youth substance use during the pandemic that varied significantly by youth age. Note. Each panel depicts rate of youth substance use as a function of a different correlate. Interaction between each correlate and youth age in predicting youth use of any substance was statistically significant (p < .05) in all instances. Associations between prepandemic externalizing problems, parent alcohol use, youth perceived stress, and youth depressive symptoms were stronger among older youth. The interaction of parent frequency of alcohol use with youth age was no longer statistically significant after applying the false discovery rate (FDR) adjustment (p = .18).
| Name | Type |
|---|---|
| 11-year-olds local | cohort |
| 11-year-olds 2018/2019 (pre-pandemic) local | cohort |
| 11-year-olds 2020 (pandemic) local | cohort |
| 12-year-olds local | cohort |
| 12-year-olds 2019 (pre-pandemic) local | cohort |
| 12-year-olds 2020 (pandemic) local | cohort |
| ABCD 3.0 data release local | cohort |
| ABCD COVID-19 Survey First Data Release local | cohort |
| ABCD study | cohort |
| active e-cigarette users local | cohort |
| adolescents | cohort |
| alcohol | phenotype |
| Alcohol Use | phenotype |
| Alcohol use days per month local | phenotype |
| American Community Survey | cohort |
| anxiety | phenotype |
| any substance local | drug |
| Any substance local | drug |
| any substance use | phenotype |
| brain development | phenotype |
| Cannabis product local | drug |
| cannabis use | phenotype |
| Cannabis use times per day local | phenotype |
| chew local | drug |
| Chew local | drug |
| cigarettes | phenotype |
| Cigar/hookah/pipe local | drug |
| Community-based cohort local | cohort |
| concentrates local | drug |
| COVID-19 local | drug |
| COVID-19 pandemic local | phenotype |
| COVID-19-related uncertainty local | phenotype |
| depression | phenotype |
| depressive symptoms | phenotype |
| drug | drug |
| drug dependence | phenotype |
| drugs | drug |
| e-cigarette local | drug |
| economic support local | drug |
| Edible products local | drug |
| educational attainment | phenotype |
| electronic nicotine delivery system local | drug |
| Electronic nicotine delivery system local | drug |
| emotional support local | drug |
| externalizing disorders | phenotype |
| Extreme stress about uncertainty local | phenotype |
| families | cohort |
| General anxiety local | phenotype |
| hookah local | drug |
| Hookah local | drug |
| Household income loss due to COVID-19 local | phenotype |
| inhalants | drug |
| inhalant use local | phenotype |
| internalizing disorders | phenotype |
| Loss of Income local | phenotype |
| Material hardship local | phenotype |
| Material Hardship local | phenotype |
| medication | drug |
| misuse of prescription drugs local | phenotype |
| nationwide sample local | cohort |
| nicotine | drug |
| nicotine use | phenotype |
| Nicotine use times per day local | phenotype |
| Number of drinks local | drug |
| Older teens local | cohort |
| online schooling local | cohort |
| other drugs | drug |
| parental alcohol use | phenotype |
| parental education | phenotype |
| Parental education level local | phenotype |
| Parental Unmarried Status local | phenotype |
| Parent cannabis use local | phenotype |
| Parent drug use local | drug |
| Parent drunkenness frequency local | drug |
| Parent nicotine use local | phenotype |
| parents | cohort |
| Parents being married local | phenotype |
| Parent tobacco use local | drug |
| past-30-day alcohol use | phenotype |
| past-30-day nicotine use | phenotype |
| perceived stress | phenotype |
| pipe | drug |
| Potential for harm local | phenotype |
| Pre-existing Externalizing/Internalizing Psychopathology local | phenotype |
| Prescription drugs (misuse) local | drug |
| Prescription drugs (non‑prescribed) local | drug |
| schooling local | phenotype |
| school-related contact with peers local | phenotype |
| School-related peer contact local | phenotype |
| site | cohort |
| smokeless tobacco | phenotype |
| Smokeless tobacco/chew/snus local | drug |
| smoking flower local | drug |
| Smoking flower local | drug |
| smoking oils local | drug |
| Smoking oils or concentrates local | drug |
| snus | drug |
| Social distancing local | phenotype |
| stress | phenotype |
| substance | phenotype |
| substances | phenotype |
| substance use | phenotype |
| Survey wave local | cohort |
| tobacco cigar local | drug |
| Tobacco cigar local | drug |
| tobacco cigarette local | drug |
| unmarried parents local | phenotype |
| U.S. children aged 9/10 years local | cohort |
| U.S. youth cohort local | cohort |
| vaping local | drug |
| vaping flower local | drug |
| Vaping flower local | drug |
| Vaping nicotine local | drug |
| Vaping of nicotine local | phenotype |
| Vaping oils or concentrates local | drug |
| Worry about COVID-19 local | phenotype |
| Worry about infection local | phenotype |
| Younger subsamples local | cohort |
| Youth age local | phenotype |
| Youth alcohol use local | phenotype |
| Youth any substance use local | phenotype |
| Youth externalizing problems local | phenotype |
| Youth internalizing problems local | phenotype |
| Youth race/ethnicity local | phenotype |
| Youth sex local | phenotype |
| youth substance use | phenotype |
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In this knowledge base
| Title | Year | PMID |
|---|---|---|
| COVID-19 pandemic stressors are associated with reported increases in frequency of drunkenness among individuals with a history of alcohol use disorder. | 2023 | 37803048 |
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