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

Yvonne M. Terry-McElrath, Megan E. Patrick

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    90 Scopus citations

    Abstract

    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.

    Original languageEnglish (US)
    Pages (from-to)2224-2233
    Number of pages10
    JournalAlcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research
    Volume42
    Issue number11
    DOIs
    StatePublished - Nov 2018

    Bibliographical note

    Funding Information:
    Development of this manuscript was supported by research grants R01AA023504 and R01AA025037 from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and R01DA001411 and R01DA016575 from the National Institute on Drug Abuse. The study sponsors had no role in the study design, collection, analysis, or interpretation of the data, writing of the manuscript, or the decision to submit the paper for publication. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the study sponsors.

    Publisher Copyright:
    © 2018 by the Research Society on Alcoholism

    Keywords

    • Alcohol
    • Marijuana
    • Simultaneous Use
    • Young Adult

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