Early Drinking Onset Increases Lifetime Injury Risk
Ralph Hingson, Sc.D., and other researchers at the Boston University School
of Public Health reported in the September 27 issue of the Journal of the
American Medical Association that the younger people are when they begin
drinking the more likely they are to be injured later in life when under the
influence of alcohol. Those who start drinking before age 14 are 12 times more
likely to be injured than those who begin drinking at or after age 21. After
adjusting for history of alcoholism, family history of alcoholism, and other
characteristics associated with early onset drinking, the researchers found that
people who begin drinking before age 14 are about three times more likely than
those who begin drinking at or after age 21 to be injured while drinking.
"This analysis shows that for each year under age 21 that drinking onset is
delayed, risk for later life injury diminishes," said Enoch Gordis, M.D.,
Director, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. The NIAAA reported
in 1998 that early drinking onset is associated with increased lifetime risk for
the clinical disorders alcohol dependence (alcoholism) and alcohol abuse.
Finding the reasons for these associations is a focus of continuing NIAAA
research. "What is clear now--and grows clearer with each new scientific
report--is that young people and their parents need to be aware of both short-
and long-term risks of adolescent drinking," said Dr. Gordis.
The source of the data for both the alcohol disorder and the injury-risk
analyses was the National Longitudinal Alcohol Epidemiologic Survey (NLAES),
conducted in 1992 for NIAAA by the U.S. Bureau of the Census to assess drinking
practices and effects among adult Americans. The most comprehensive survey of
alcohol use ever conducted, NLAES involved 42,862 face-to-face interviews of
Americans 18 years of age and older. Reports from the NLAES data (published in
1998 as Drinking in the United States*) continue to provide the
epidemiologic basis that guides research and informs public policy formulation.
Dr. Hingson’s analysis for the injury risk study was supported by the
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and used NLAES data. The NLAES
will be repeated in 2002 as the National Epidemiologic Survey of Alcohol-Related
Conditions.
About 66 percent of the 1992 NLAES sample reported having ever consumed
alcohol, 49 percent had their first drink before age 21, and 3 percent had their
first drink (defined as the first full drink of alcohol excluding tastes or
small sips) before age 14. About 15 percent of the 27,081 NLAES respondents who
had ever consumed alcohol reported having been at some time in their lives in a
drinking situation that increased the risk of injury; 3 percent had been in such
a situation in the past year. Of the respondents who had ever consumed alcohol,
about 8 percent had been injured after or while drinking and about 3 percent had
been injured during the past year.
Unintentional injury (including motor vehicle crashes, falls, drownings,
burns, and unintended gunshot wounds) claimed 94,331 lives in 1998 and is the
leading cause of death for persons aged 1-34 years. Approximately one-third of
unintentional injuries are estimated to be alcohol-related.
"Our report shows that younger age of drinking onset is associated with
frequent heavy drinking later in life--not only for persons who are alcohol
dependent but also for other drinkers. This is part—but not all—of the reason
that early drinking HEIGHTens the injury risk for persons both above and below
the legal drinking age," said Dr. Hingson.
"These findings provide important information for physicians and other health
care providers to share with their adolescent patients."
Dr. Hingson will present his findings at 1:00 p.m. today at the National
Press Club, First Amendment Room, at the kickoff of the Mothers Against Drunk
Driving National Youth Summit to Prevent Underage Drinking. For reprints of the
article or for interviews with Dr. Hingson, please telephone 617/638-5160 or
email at rhingson@bu.edu. For interviews with Dr. Gordis, telephone NIAAA Press
at (301/443-0595). For additional information about the Youth Summit or to
follow the proceedings, visit
www.madd.org/nys
. *For additional alcohol research information, please visit
http://www.niaaa.nih.gov
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