This study presents nationally representative estimates of self-reported changes in alcohol and cannabis consumption since the onset of COVID-19 in Canada. We used data from the Survey on COVID-19 and Mental Health (collected from September to December 2020) to calculate the prevalence of self-reported change in alcohol and cannabis consumption. We found that 15.7% of respondents self-reported an increase in alcohol consumption and 5.4% in cannabis consumption since the start of the pandemic. Sociodemographic disparities were also observed, indicating that increased alcohol and cannabis consumption may be more prevalent among certain populations.

LAY SUMMARY The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) continue to highlight the need to promote greater diversity and inclusion in its ranks. An increased representation of women in the Canadian military would enable greater capacity and capabilities to serve people, both domestically and abroad, and would contribute to a more diverse and inclusive military. To better understand how the CAF could increase the representation of women in the Canadian military, this article provides the key findings of three internal research studies on women’s perceptions of joining the military and women’s experiences as CAF members. These research studies examined the factors that influence women to join the military, the possible challenges impacting women’s decisions to join the military, and the improvements required for enabling a more effective military culture, including recruitment strategies that may help to increase the representation of women. Findings highlight specific factors and recommendations military leaders may consider to help promote greater capacity and capabilities through a more diverse and inclusive military.

Introduction Cette étude présente des estimations représentatives à l’échelle nationale portant sur les changements autodéclarés relatifs à la consommation d’alcool et de cannabis depuis le début de la pandémie de COVID 19 au Canada. Nous nous sommes servi de données de l’Enquête sur la COVID 19 et la santé mentale (qui a eu lieu de septembre à décembre 2020) pour calculer la prévalence de ces changements. Les résultats révèlent que 15,7 % des répondants ont déclaré avoir augmenté leur consommation d’alcool et 5,4 % leur consommation de cannabis depuis le début de la pandémie. Des disparités sociodémographiques ont été observées, laissant supposer que l’augmentation de la consommation d’alcool et de cannabis serait plus répandue au sein de certaines populations.

Introduction Increased alcohol and cannabis consumption and related harms have been reported since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Existing evidence shows that substance use and related harms differ by gender. Yet, no Canadian study has applied a gendered lens to alcohol and cannabis consumption use during this time. Our objectives were to (1) provide gender-specific prevalence estimates of self-reported increased alcohol and cannabis use; and (2) examine gender-specific associations between sociodemographic and mental health variables and alcohol and cannabis use. Methods Using data from the Survey on COVID-19 and Mental Health, we calculated nationally representative, gender-specific prevalence estimates and disaggregated them by sociodemographic and mental health variables. Four logistic regression models were used to assess the likelihood of self-reported increased alcohol and cannabis use. Results The prevalence of self-reported increase in alcohol use (16.2% women; 15.2% men) and cannabis use (4.9% women; 5.8% men) did not differ by gender. For both genders, income, racialized group membership, working in the past week, being a parent/legal guardian of a child aged under 18 and screening positive for depression and anxiety were associated with increased alcohol use. Men and women who were between the ages of 18 to 44, screened positive for depression, or both, were more likely to report increased cannabis use. For women, education was significantly associated with increased alcohol use. For men, being a parent/legal guardian was significantly associated with lower odds of increased cannabis use. Conclusion Sociodemographic factors, as well as depression and anxiety, were similarly associated with increased alcohol and cannabis use for both men and women in the second wave of the pandemic.

Objective Alcohol use is a known risk factor for suicidality, yet this relationship has not been explored during the pandemic in Canada. As a growing body of evidence demonstrates the negative impact of COVID-19 on alcohol consumption and associated harms in Canada, there is a need to examine this more closely. Methods Using the Survey on COVID-19 and Mental Health 2020, we compared the prevalence of suicide ideation among: (1) individuals who reported an increase in alcohol consumption vs those who reported a decrease/no change, and (2) individuals who reported past month heavy episodic drinking vs those who did not. We compared overall unadjusted odds ratios and across a number of sociodemographic and mental health variables. All estimates were weighted to ensure they were nationally representative. Results The prevalence and likelihood of suicide ideation were significantly higher among people who reported increased alcohol consumption during the pandemic (4.9% vs 2.0%; OR = 2.6, 95% CI: 1.8, 3.7) and people who reported past month heavy episodic drinking (3.4% vs 2.1%; OR = 1.7, 95% CI: 1.2, 2.3). Males and middle-aged and older-aged individuals had the highest odds ratios for increased alcohol consumption and past month heavy episodic drinking with suicide ideation. Conclusion In the Canadian general population during the COVID-19 pandemic, there were significant associations between suicide ideation and increased alcohol use as well as past month heavy episodic drinking across specific sociodemographic subgroups. Future research could explore these associations while adjusting for social determinants of health such as income security, employment, education, social support, stress, and mental health.

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Introduction Alors que des données probantes montrent que certains travailleurs de première ligne et travailleurs essentiels ont augmenté leur consommation d’alcool pendant la pandémie de COVID-19, cette question n’a pas été étudiée au Canada. Méthodologie À l’aide des données de l’Enquête sur la COVID-19 et la santé mentale (ECSM) de 2020, nous avons calculé la prévalence pondérée de la consommation autodéclarée accrue d’alcool et de la forte consommation épisodique d’alcool et les intervalles de confiance à 95 % correspondants pour trois groupes de population : travailleurs de première ligne, travailleurs essentiels et travailleurs autres que de première ligne ou essentiels. Nous avons effectué une analyse de régression logistique pour étudier les associations entre les déterminants sociaux de la santé, la santé mentale et la consommation d’alcool pour chaque groupe. Résultats La prévalence de la consommation accrue d’alcool et celle de la forte consommation épisodique d’alcool au cours du dernier mois ne différaient pas entre les travailleurs de première ligne, les travailleurs essentiels et les autres travailleurs. Au sein des trois groupes, les personnes ne s’identifiant pas comme appartenant à un groupe racisé avaient des probabilités supérieures dans les deux résultats. Le fait d’avoir obtenu un résultat positif au dépistage du trouble d’anxiété généralisée ou du trouble de l’humeur était significativement associé à une consommation accrue d’alcool chez les trois groupes. Chez les travailleurs de première ligne et les travailleurs essentiels, les personnes de genre féminin étaient beaucoup moins susceptibles que celles de genre masculin de faire état d’une forte consommation épisodique d’alcool. Chez les travailleurs essentiels seulement, on a établi une association significative entre le fait de vivre dans une région rurale et une probabilité moindre de consommation accrue d’alcool, ainsi qu’une association significative entre le fait d’avoir obtenu un résultat positif au dépistage du trouble de stress post-traumatique et une probabilité plus élevée de forte consommation épisodique d’alcool. Chez les travailleurs de première ligne seulement, on a établi une association significative entre le fait de vivre dans une région rurale et une probabilité moindre de forte consommation épisodique d’alcool. Conclusion Même si les travailleurs de première ligne et les travailleurs essentiels ne se sont pas révélés plus susceptibles de faire état d’une consommation accrue d’alcool et d’une forte consommation épisodique d’alcool que les autres travailleurs, des différences ont été établies dans les facteurs associés à la consommation d’alcool. Ces résultats montrent l’importance d’analyser chaque groupe séparément pour obtenir des données aptes à orienter les stratégies ciblées de prévention.

Introduction There is evidence that some frontline and essential workers have increased their alcohol use during the COVID-19 pandemic; however, this has not been examined in Canada. Methods Using the Survey on COVID-19 and Mental Health 2020, weighted prevalence and 95% confidence intervals of self-reported increased alcohol consumption and heavy episodic drinking were calculated for each of the population groups: frontline workers, essential workers, and nonfrontline or essential workers (NFEW). Logistic regression was used to examine the associations between social determinants of health, mental health and alcohol use for each group. Results The prevalence of increased alcohol consumption and past-month heavy episodic drinking did not differ across frontline workers, essential workers and NFEW. For the three groups, nonracialized group members had significantly higher odds for both outcomes. Screening positive for either generalized anxiety disorder or mood disorder was significantly associated with increased alcohol consumption across the threegroups. For frontline and essential workers, females had significantly lower odds of heavy episodic drinking compared to males. For essential workers only, living in a rural area was significantly associated with lower odds of increased alcohol use, and screening positive for posttraumatic stress disorder was significantly associated with increased odds of heavy episodic drinking. For frontline workers only, living in a rural area was significantly associated with lower odds of heavy episodic drinking. Conclusion While frontline and essential workers were not more likely to report increased alcohol consumption and heavy episodic drinking compared to NFEW, there were some differences in factors associated with alcohol use. Such findings demonstrate the benefit of examining each group separately to provide information for targeted prevention strategies.