Background To identify sources of race/ethnic differences related to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), we compared trauma exposure, risk for PTSD among those exposed to trauma, and treatment-seeking among Whites, Blacks, Hispanics and Asians in the US general population. Method Data from structured diagnostic interviews with 34 653 adult respondents to the 2004–2005 wave of the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC) were analysed. Results The lifetime prevalence of PTSD was highest among Blacks (8.7%), intermediate among Hispanics and Whites (7.0% and 7.4%) and lowest among Asians (4.0%). Differences in risk for trauma varied by type of event. Whites were more likely than the other groups to have any trauma, to learn of a trauma to someone close, and to learn of an unexpected death, but Blacks and Hispanics had higher risk of child maltreatment, chiefly witnessing domestic violence, and Asians, Black men, and Hispanic women had higher risk of war-related events than Whites. Among those exposed to trauma, PTSD risk was slightly higher among Blacks [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 1.22] and lower among Asians (aOR 0.67) compared with Whites, after adjustment for characteristics of trauma exposure. All minority groups were less likely to seek treatment for PTSD than Whites (aOR range: 0.39–0.61), and fewer than half of minorities with PTSD sought treatment (range: 32.7–42.0%). Conclusions When PTSD affects US race/ethnic minorities, it is usually untreated. Large disparities in treatment indicate a need for investment in accessible and culturally sensitive treatment options.

BACKGROUND-Childhood adversity is associated with adult mental disorders, but the mechanisms underlying this association remain inadequately understood. Stress sensitization, whereby childhood adversity increases vulnerability to mental disorders following adult stressful life events, has been proposed as a potential mechanism. We provide a test of the stress sensitization hypothesis in a national sample.

This naturalistic experiment suggests a negative impact of television upon disordered eating attitudes and behaviours in a media-naïve population.

Objective-Adolescence is an important period of risk for the development of lifelong smoking behaviors. Compelling, although inconsistent, evidence suggests a relation between parental smoking and the risk of smoking initiation during adolescence. This study investigates unresolved issues concerning the strength and nature of the association between parent smoking and offspring smoking initiation.Methods-We enrolled 564 adolescents aged 12-17, along with one of their parents, into the New England Family Study between [2001][2002][2003][2004]. Lifetime smoking histories were obtained from parents and their adolescent offspring. Discrete-time survival analysis was used to investigate the influence of parental smoking histories on the risk of adolescent smoking initiation.Results-Parental smoking was associated with a significantly higher risk of smoking initiation in adolescent offspring (odds ratio=2.81, 95% CI=1.78, 4.41). In addition, the likelihood of offspring smoking initiation increased with the number of smoking parents and the duration of exposure to parental smoking, suggesting a dose-response relation between parental smoking and offspring smoking. Offspring of parents who had quit smoking were no more likely to smoke than offspring of parents who had never smoked. The effects of parental smoking on offspring initiation differed by sex (with a stronger effect of father's smoking on boys than girls), developmental period (with a stronger effect of parental smoking before the adolescent was age 13 than afterwards), and residence of parents (with effects of father's smoking being dependent on living in the same household as the adolescent). Parental smoking was also associated with stronger negative reactions to adolescents' first cigarette, a potential marker of the risk of progression to higher levels of use.Conclusions-Parental smoking is an important source of vulnerability to smoking initiation among adolescents, and parental smoking cessation might attenuate this vulnerability. KeywordsSmoking; adolescents; parent-offspring transmissionMost adult smokers began smoking during adolescence; 1-3 preventing adolescent smoking initiation is therefore important for reducing the public health burden of smoking-related illnesses over the life course. There is accumulating evidence that parental smoking increases the risk for adolescent smoking initiation; 4-19 however, unresolved issues persist concerning the strength and nature of the association between parent smoking and initiation of smoking in offspring. 20 For example, while parental smoking and parental nicotine dependence have each been linked with an increased risk of offspring smoking, 21,22 few studies of intergenerational transmission have addressed their comparative effects. Evidence from one such study suggests that the effect of maternal smoking on offspring smoking is largely irrespective of maternal nicotine dependence. 18Prior evidence of a dose-response relationship between parental smoking and offspring initiation is also mixed. In...

Suicide is difficult to predict and prevent and remains a leading cause of death worldwide. Although soldiers historically have had a suicide rate well below that of the general population, the suicide rate among members of the U.S. Army has increased markedly over the past several years and now exceeds that of the general population. This paper reviews psychosocial factors known to be associated with the increased risk of suicidal behavior in general and describes how some of these factors may be especially important in understanding suicide among soldiers. Moving forward, the prevention of suicide requires additional research aimed at: (a) better describing when, where, and among whom suicidal behavior occurs, (b) using exploratory studies to discover new risk and protective factors, (c) developing new methods of predicting suicidal behavior that synthesize information about modifiable risk and protective factors from multiple domains, and (d) understanding the mechanisms and pathways through which suicidal behavior develops. Although the scope and severity of this problem is daunting, the increasing attention and dedication to this issue by the Armed Forces, scientists, and society provide hope for our ability to better predict and prevent these tragic outcomes in the future.