clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00006489.
Objective-The authors compared the prevalence and pattern of substance use in undergraduate student athletes and nonathletes from 2005-2006. Participants-Authors collected data from male (n = 418) and female (n = 475) student athletes and nonathletes from [2005][2006]. Methods-The authors administered self-report questionnaires to assess prevalence, quantity, and frequency of alcohol and drug use, and to determine patterns of student athletes' alcohol and drug use during their athletic season versus out of season.Results-Male student athletes were at high risk for heavy drinking and performance-enhancing drug use. Considerable in-season versus out-of-season substance use fluctuations were identified in male and female student athletes.Conclusions-Additional, and possibly alternative, factors are involved in a student athlete's decision-making process regarding drug and alcohol use, which suggests that the development of prevention programs that are specifically designed to meet the unique needs of the college student athlete may be beneficial. Keywordsalcohol; athletics; college students; other drugs; performance-enhancing drugs; sex The use of alcohol and drugs by students is one of the most serious problems facing colleges today. Student athletes may be particularly at risk for substance use-related problems in the college setting due to their unique social environments, the increased physical demands of athletics, and the heightened stress and time constraints placed upon them by fulfilling the dual role of athlete and student. 1,2 Therefore, the college experience of student athletes may be distinct from nonathletes, 2 which raises the question of whether substance use interventions geared toward the general student body are equally effective for college student athletes. 1 In this study, we assessed the prevalence, quantity, and frequency of alcohol and drug use by male and female undergraduate student athletes and nonathletes. We also evaluated patterns of use, such as student athletes' alcohol and drug use during their athletic season versus out of season. Comprehensively assessing the prevalence and patterns of substance use in male and female student athletes and how it differs from nonathletes of the same sex may inform the development of prevention interventions that focus on the specific needs of student athletes.For comments and further information, address correspondence to Dr Helene R. White, Center of Alcohol Studies, Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, 607 Allison Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA (hewhite@rutgers.edu). NIH Public Access NIH-PA Author ManuscriptNIH-PA Author Manuscript NIH-PA Author ManuscriptIn the United States, the rates of heavy drinking, tobacco use, and illicit substance use peak between ages 18 and 25 years. 3 This age range coincides with a period of major transition out of high school and, for many, into college. In the college setting, frequent and heavy drinking is common. Using data collected from 5 national surveys, O'Malley and Johnston 4 estimat...
There is compelling evidence that college student athletes engage in frequent episodes of heavy drinking and are prone to negative consequences resulting from such use. This study sought to identify risk and protective factors associated with student-athlete drinking and determine if studentathlete risk factors differed from those of non-athletes. Athletes compared to non-athletes reported more exaggerated perceptions of peer heavy drinking and lower sensation seeking and coping and enhancement motives for drinking, suggesting a risk profile distinct from non-athletes. In the overall sample, higher sensation seeking, overestimation of peer heavy drinking, non-use of protective behaviors while drinking, and higher enhancement and coping drinking motives were associated with greater frequency of heavy episodic drinking and more negative drinking consequences. In athletes compared to non-athletes, sensation seeking was more strongly associated with heavy episodic drinking and drinking to cope was more strongly associated with negative alcohol-related consequences. Overall, the results suggest that already proven brief intervention strategies, with minor adaptations related to the roles of sensation seeking and drinking to cope, may be helpful for student athletes.
Background Reports of illicit substance use by college athletes have become commonplace in recent years, yet comparatively little effort has been put forth by the research community to understand these behaviors. Methods Data for this study came from a large, national dataset collected by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). This study compared substance use behaviors of male undergraduate student athletes who reported using ergogenic performance enhancing substances (e.g., anabolic steroids and peptide hormones) during college (PES users) to those who did not (PES non-users). Results A consistent pattern of higher substance use rates was observed among PES users compared to non-users, including heavier drinking, higher prevalence rates of cigarettes, marijuana, amphetamines, narcotics, and a variety of permissible and impermissible dietary supplements. An unexpected finding was that there were large discrepancies in reported prevalence rates between similar or overlapping survey items (e.g., past year use of “narcotics” versus “I have taken Vicodin, Oxycontin or Percocet with/without a prescription”). Conclusions These findings suggest that male college athletes who use PES while in college demonstrate a general tendency to engage in alcohol and drug use behaviors, regardless of whether these behaviors improve or impede athletic performance. The results further suggest that college athletes may not fully appreciate drug categorizations that are commonly employed to gauge substance use behaviors. Changes to drug education and prevention programs may be needed to enhance understanding of drug properties and actions.
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