Stronger alcohol-violence association when adolescents drink less? Evidence from three Nordic countries.
Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT: Background
Since 2000, adolescents' alcohol use and heavy episodic drinking (HED) have declined in the Nordic countries. However, little is known about corresponding trends in alcohol-related harm and possible changes in the alcohol-harm association. The aims are to examine (i) whether the decline in HED was accompanied by a decline in alcohol-related violence (AV) and (ii) whether the strength of the HED-AV association changed concomitant with the decline.Methods
Analysis of data from the European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs (ESPAD), conducted among 15-16-year-olds in Iceland, Norway and Sweden in 2007 and 2015 (n = 17 027). Changes in proportions of AV and alcohol use past 12 months, and mean frequency of HED past 30 days were examined using Pearsons χ2-test and F-test, respectively. The HED-AV associations were estimated using logistic regression analysis.Results
HED and AV proportions decreased from 2007 to 2015 in all countries. Among current drinkers (n = 8927), both HED frequency and AV proportion decreased in Norway (P < 0.001) and remained stable in Iceland. In Sweden, AV decreased (P < 0.001) whereas HED remained stable. The magnitude of the HED-AV association increased in Norway (Beta2015-2007 = 0.145, 95% CI 0.054-0.236), remained the same in Iceland and decreased in Sweden (Beta2015-2007 = -0.082, 95% CI -0.158 to -0.005).Conclusions
Among youth in Iceland, Norway and Sweden, heavy episodic drinking and alcohol-related violence declined from 2007 to 2015. Among drinkers, the strength of the alcohol-violence association was moderated by the extent of heavy episodic drinking.
SUBMITTER: Moan IS
PROVIDER: S-EPMC8514171 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
Similar Datasets
Project description:Excessive alcohol consumption poses a serious problem for public health. Digital behavior change interventions have the potential to help users reduce their drinking. In accordance with Open Science principles, this paper describes the development of a smartphone app to help individuals who drink excessively to reduce their alcohol consumption. Following the UK Medical Research Council's guidance and the Multiphase Optimization Strategy, development consisted of two phases: (i) selection of intervention components and (ii) design and development work to implement the chosen components into modules to be evaluated further for inclusion in the app. Phase 1 involved a scoping literature review, expert consensus study and content analysis of existing alcohol apps. Findings were integrated within a broad model of behavior change (Capability, Opportunity, Motivation-Behavior). Phase 2 involved a highly iterative process and used the "Person-Based" approach to promote engagement. From Phase 1, five intervention components were selected: (i) Normative Feedback, (ii) Cognitive Bias Re-training, (iii) Self-monitoring and Feedback, (iv) Action Planning, and (v) Identity Change. Phase 2 indicated that each of these components presented different challenges for implementation as app modules; all required multiple iterations and design changes to arrive at versions that would be suitable for inclusion in a subsequent evaluation study. The development of the Drink Less app involved a thorough process of component identification with a scoping literature review, expert consensus, and review of other apps. Translation of the components into app modules required a highly iterative process involving user testing and design modification.
| S-EPMC6417151 | biostudies-literature
Project description:IntroductionFor many people with alcohol use disorders, alcohol drinking is a highly ingrained and automatized behavior with negative long-term health consequences. Implementation intentions, a behavioral intervention that links high-risk drinking situations with alternative, healthier responses, provide a means to intervene on habitual drinking behaviors. Here, a pilot treatment using implementation intentions was assessed with remote assessments and treatment prompts.MethodsTreatment-seeking individuals with alcohol use disorder between the ages of 18 and 65 were recruited from the community from October 2014 to November 2016. Participants (N=35) were quasi-randomly assigned to complete either active (n=18) or control (n=17) two-week implementation intention interventions. Active implementation intentions linked high-risk situations with alternative responses whereas the control condition selected situations and responses but did not link these together. Daily ecological momentary interventions of participant-tailored implementation intentions were delivered via text message. Alcohol consumption was assessed once daily with self-reported ecological momentary assessments (EMAs) of drinks consumed the previous day and thrice daily remotely submitted breathalyzer samples to assess reliability of self-reports.ResultsOn drinking days (80% of days), the active implementation intentions group reduced alcohol consumption during the intervention period compared to the control condition; however the difference between consumption was not observed at one-month follow-up.DiscussionThe implementation intention intervention was associated with a 1.09 drink per day decrease in alcohol consumption on drinking days compared to a decrease of 0.29 drinks per day in the control condition. Future studies may combine implementation intentions with other treatments to help individuals to reduce alcohol consumption.
| S-EPMC5945346 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Background: A factorial experiment evaluating the Drink Less app found no clear evidence for main effects of enhanced versus minimal versions of five components but some evidence for an interaction effect. Bayes factors (BFs) showed the data to be insensitive. This study examined the use of BFs to update the evidence with further recruitment. Methods: A between-subject factorial experiment evaluated the main and two-way interaction effects of enhanced versus minimal version of five components of Drink Less. Participants were excessive drinkers, aged 18+, and living in the UK. After the required sample size was reached (n=672), additional data were collected for five months. Outcome measures were change in past week alcohol consumption and Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) score at one-month follow-up, amongst responders only (those who completed the questionnaire). BFs (with a half-normal distribution) were calculated (BF<0.33 indicate evidence for null hypothesis; 0.33<BF<3 indicate data are insensitive). Results: Of the sample of 2586, 342 (13.2%) responded to follow-up. Data were mainly insensitive but tended to support there being no large main effects of the enhanced version of individual components on consumption (0.22<BF<0.83) or AUDIT score (0.14<BF<0.98). Data no longer supported there being two-way interaction effects (0.31<BF<1.99). In an additional exploratory analysis, participants receiving four of the components averaged a numerically greater reduction in consumption than those not receiving any (21.6 versus 12.1 units), but the data were insensitive (BF=1.42). Conclusions: Data from extended recruitment in a factorial experiment evaluating components of Drink Less remained insensitive but tended towards individual and pairs of components not having a large effect. In an exploratory analysis, there was weak, anecdotal evidence for a synergistic effect of four components. In the event of uncertain results, calculating BFs can be used to update the strength of evidence of a dataset supplemented with extended recruitment.
| S-EPMC6635983 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Aims(1) To compare affective changes over drinking and non-drinking days among frequent drinkers and (2) to evaluate whether drinkers' expectations influence affective changes and perceived pleasure and relief from drinking.DesignObservational study involving ecological momentary assessments collected via electronic diaries during the course of 3 weeks.SettingDrinkers' usual settings in Columbia, MO, USA.ParticipantsA total of 400 adult, frequent drinkers, aged 18-70 years.MeasurementsEcological assessments included morning reports, pre-drinking random prompts, user-initiated first-drink reports and device-prompted follow-ups over drinking episodes. Participants rated positive (enthusiastic, excited, happy) and negative (distressed, sad) affect and perceived pleasure and relief from drinking in real time. A self-report questionnaire completed at baseline evaluated expectancies for enhanced sociability and tension reduction from drinking.FindingsRelative to affective changes over non-drinking days, positive affect increased prior to drinking [95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.004, 0.023], and at first drink (95% CI = 0.238, 0.317), whereas negative affect decreased prior to drinking (95% CI = - 0.007, 0.000) and at first drink (95% CI = - 0.154, - 0.098). Sociability expectancies augmented increases in positive affect prior to drinking (95% CI = 0.009, 0.027) and at first drink (95% CI = 0.017, 0.169). Sociability expectancies also enhanced perceived pleasure from first drinks (95% CI = 0.046, 0.318). Tension-reduction expectancies attenuated decreases in negative affect at first drink (95% CI = - 0.133, - 0.029), but augmented perceived relief from first drinks (95% CI = 0.001, 0.304).ConclusionsAlthough theoretical models tend to focus on negative affective outcomes of drinking, changes in positive affect prior to drinking and early in drinking episodes are important for maintaining drinking behavior. Frequent drinkers' expectations for enhanced sociability or tension reduction from drinking influence their affective experiences over drinking days and perceptions of pleasure and relief from drinking.
| S-EPMC4521989 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundAlpha-chloralose (AC) is a compound known to be toxic to various animal species and humans. In 2018 and 2019 an increase in suspected cases of AC poisoning in cats related to the use of AC as a rodenticide was reported to national veterinary and chemical authorities in Finland, Norway and Sweden by veterinarians working in clinical practices in respective country. The aims of this study were to prospectively investigate AC poisoning in cats, including possible secondary poisoning by consuming poisoned mice, and to study metabolism and excretion of AC in cats through analysis of feline urine.MethodsData on signalment, history and clinical findings were prospectively collected in Finland, Norway and Sweden from July 2020 until March of 2021 using a questionnaire which the attending veterinarian completed and submitted together with a serum sample collected from suspected feline cases of AC-poisoning. The diagnosis was confirmed by quantification of AC in serum samples. Content of AC was studied in four feline urine samples, including screening for AC metabolites by UHPLC-HRMS/MS. Bait intake and amount of AC consumed by mice was observed in wild mice during an extermination of a rodent infestation.ResultsIn total, 59 of 70 collected questionnaires and accompanying serum samples were included, with 127 to 70 100 ng/mL AC detected in the serum. Several tentative AC-metabolites were detected in the analysed feline urine samples, including dechlorinated and oxidated AC, several sulfate conjugates, and one glucuronic acid conjugate of AC. The calculated amount of AC ingested by each mouse was 33 to 106 mg with a mean of 61 mg.ConclusionsClinical recognition of symptoms of AC poisoning in otherwise healthy cats roaming free outdoors and known to be rodent hunters strongly correlated with confirmation of the diagnosis through toxicological analyses of serum samples. The collected feline exposure data regarding AC show together with the calculation of the intake of bait and subsequent AC concentrations in mice that secondary poisoning from ingestion of mice is possible. The results of the screening for AC metabolites in feline urine confirm that cats excrete AC both unchanged and metabolized through dechlorination, oxidation, glucuronidation and sulfatation pathways.
| S-EPMC9446805 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundMortality in children under five years has been widely studied, whereas mortality at 5-9 years has received little attention. Using unique data from national registers in three Nordic countries, we aimed to characterize mortality directionality in children aged 0 to 9 years.Methods and findingsThe cohort study included all children born in Denmark from 1973 to 2008 (n = 2,433,758), Sweden from 1973 to 2006 (n = 3,400,212), and a random sample of 89.3% of children born in Finland from 1987 to 2007 (n = 1,272,083). Children were followed from 0 to 9 years, and cumulative mortality and mortality rates were compared by age, gender, cause of death, and calendar periods. Among the 7,105,962 children, there were 48,299 deaths during study period. From 1981-1985 to 2001-2005, all-cause mortality rates were reduced by between 34% and 62% at different ages. Overall mortality rate ratio between boys and girls decreased from 1.25 to 1.21 with the most prominent reduction in children aged 5-9 years (from 1.59 to 1.19). Neoplasms, diseases of the nervous system and transport accidents were the most frequent cause of death after the first year of life. These three leading causes of death declined by 42% (from 6.2 to 3.6 per 100,000 person years), 43% (from 3.7 to 2.1) and 62% (from 3.9 to 1.5) in boys, and 25% (from 4.1 to 3.1 per 100000 person years), 42% (from 3.4 to 1.9) and 63% (from 3.0 to 1.1) in girls, respectively. Mortality from neoplasms was the highest in each age except infants when comparing cause-specific mortality, and half of deaths from diseases of the nervous system occurred in infancy. Mortality rate due to transport accidents increased with age and was highest in boys aged 5-9 years.ConclusionsMortality rate in children aged 0-9 years has been decreasing with diminished difference between genders over the past decades. Our results suggest the importance of further research on mortality by causes of neoplasms, and causes of transport accidents-especially in children aged 5-9 years.
| S-EPMC4706349 | biostudies-literature
Project description:PurposeAdolescents who report having mental health problems, including depression and anxiety, are at greater risk of alcohol use. We examined the longitudinal association between mental health and alcohol use six months later in a diverse adolescent sample attending a primary care appointment. The primary care setting provides a unique opportunity to reach this younger age group and address risk factors, including mental health problems and substance use.MethodsAdolescents aged 12-18 (n = 668) recruited from waiting rooms at four primary care clinics in Los Angeles, California and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania completed a baseline web-based survey (April 2013 to November 2015) and another survey six months later. Bivariate analysis and multi-variable regression assessed associations between baseline mental health and 6-month alcohol use outcomes (any use, heavy use, and maximum quantity).ResultsAdolescents were stratified by mental health scores using the Mental Health Inventory-5 (MHI-5) cut off at baseline. In unadjusted analyses of alcohol outcomes at six months, adolescents with more mental health problems reported higher alcohol use across all three measures (p < .01 for heavy use; p < .05 for any use and maximum quantity used). Adolescents' reports of better mental health at baseline were associated with fewer heavy drinking episodes (p < .05) and lower maximum number of drinks (p < .05) at six months, after adjusting for baseline alcohol use, intervention group, site, and demographic characteristics.ConclusionsAddressing mental health in primary care may be important for decreasing alcohol problems in adolescents. Strategies for facilitating screening and intervention with adolescents at-risk of alcohol use are warranted.
| S-EPMC6611548 | biostudies-literature
Project description:New tobacco and nicotine products have emerged on the market in recent years. Most research has concerned only one product at a time, usually e-cigarettes, while little is known about the multiple use of tobacco and nicotine products among adolescents. We examined single, dual, and triple use of cigarettes, e-cigarettes, and snus among Nordic adolescents, using data of 15-16-year-olds (n = 16,125) from the European School Survey Project on Alcohol and other Drugs (ESPAD) collected in 2015 and 2019 from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and the Faroe Islands. Country-specific lifetime use of any of these products ranged between 40% and 50%, and current use between 17% and 31%. Cigarettes were the most common product in all countries except for Iceland, where e-cigarettes were remarkably more common. The proportion of dual and triple users was unexpectedly high among both experimental (24%-49%) and current users (31-42%). Triple use was less common than dual use. The users' patterns varied somewhat between the countries, and Iceland differed substantially from the other countries, with a high proportion of single e-cigarette users. More knowledge on the patterns of multiple use of tobacco and nicotine products and on the potential risk and protective factors is needed for targeted intervention and prevention efforts.
| S-EPMC8775390 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundThe extent to which interventions are perceived as acceptable to users impacts engagement and efficacy.ObjectiveIn this study, we evaluated the acceptability of (1) the smartphone app Drink Less (intervention) and (2) the National Health Service (NHS) alcohol advice web page (usual digital care and comparator) among adult drinkers in the United Kingdom participating in a randomized controlled trial evaluating the effectiveness of the Drink Less app.MethodsA subsample of 26 increasing- and higher-risk drinkers (Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test score≥8) assigned to the intervention group (Drink Less; n=14, 54%; female: n=10, 71%; age: 22-72 years; White: n=9, 64%) or usual digital care group (NHS alcohol advice web page; n=12, 46%; female: n=5, 42%; age: 23-68 years: White: n=9, 75%) took part in semistructured interviews. The interview questions were mapped on to the 7 facets of acceptability according to the Theoretical Framework of Acceptability: affective attitude, burden, perceived effectiveness, ethicality, intervention coherence, opportunity costs, and self-efficacy. Alongside these constructs, we also included a question on perceived personal relevance, which previous research has linked to acceptability and engagement. Framework and thematic analysis of data was undertaken.ResultsThe Drink Less app was perceived as being ethical, easy, user-friendly, and effective for the period the app was used. Participants reported particularly liking the tracking and feedback sections of the app, which they reported increased personal relevance and which resulted in positive affect when achieving their goals. They reported no opportunity cost. Factors such as negative affect when not meeting goals and boredom led to disengagement in the longer term for some participants. The NHS alcohol advice web page was rated as being easy and user-friendly with no opportunity costs. However, the information presented was not perceived as being personally relevant or effective in changing drinking behavior. Most participants reported neutral or negative affect, most participants thought the alcohol advice web page was accessible, and some participants reported ethical concerns around the availability of suggested resources. Some participants reported that it had acted as a starting point or a signpost to other resources. Participants in both groups discussed motivation to change and contextual factors such as COVID-19 lockdowns, which influenced their perceived self-efficacy regardless of their assigned intervention.ConclusionsDrink Less appears to be an acceptable digital intervention among the recruited sample. The NHS alcohol advice web page was generally considered unacceptable as a stand-alone intervention among the recruited sample, although it may signpost and help people access other resources and interventions.
| S-EPMC11294780 | biostudies-literature
Project description:RNA-seq was used to attain liver transcriptomes of 5 bat individuals
2022-03-13 | GSE46417 | GEO