Adolescent Alcohol Use Is Positively Associated With Later Depression in a Population-Based U.K. Cohort

Abstract

ABSTRACT. Objective: Alcohol use and internalizing problems are often positively associated during adolescence and adulthood. However, the basis of this relationship remains poorly understood, and longitudinal data collected in population-based samples could improve the development of etiological models. Method: Using a prospective populationbased U.K. cohort, the current study examined the relationship between frequency of drinking during adolescence (ages 13-15, N = 7,100) with problems with depression and anxiety at average age 17 years 10 months (n = 4,292). Analyses were conducted separately by sex and adjusted by the inclusion of potential individual-and familial-level confounders. Results: Among boys, drinking frequency was positively associated with later depression but not anxiety. This association was robust to adjustment for covariates/confounders. Among girls, drinking frequency was related to later depression and anxiety in univariable analyses. In multivariable analyses, only the association with depression remained after adjustment for covariates/confounders. Results were comparable across sexes, although the effect size of drinking frequency was higher among boys. Conclusions: Higher adolescent alcohol use, even at subclinical levels, is associated with an increased risk of later problems with depression but may not be associated with an aggregate measure of anxiety. Future research should consider the possibility of differential relationships between multiple measures of adolescent alcohol use and distinct internalizing outcomes later in development. (J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs, 75, 758-765, 2014)

Associations between emotional distress and heavy drinking among young people: A longitudinal study

“…It is true that both forms of emotional distress rarely have been assessed in one and the same study, but Skogen et al [49] recently reported that depressive symptoms were related to frequent intoxication among late teen youth, while symptoms of anxiety were not. Similar results emerged in another recent study of young people [10].…”

“…There is also evidence of a link between anxiety and extensive use of alcohol [5][6][7][8], but this association has been less extensively scrutinized and the findings seem less clear. Thus, some studies of young people report null-findings [9] or a link between anxiety and heavy drinking that is attributable to concurrent symptoms of depression and/or other confounding factors [10][11][12].…”

“…There is also evidence of a link between anxiety and extensive use of alcohol [5][6][7][8], but this association has been less extensively scrutinized and the findings seem less clear. Thus, some studies of young people report null-findings [9] or a link between anxiety and heavy drinking that is attributable to concurrent symptoms of depression and/or other confounding factors [10][11][12].The bulk of previous studies focus on severe forms of internalizing problems and harmful drinking, and have typically relied on diagnoses or other dichotomous measures. Obviously, such research may be of clinical significance, yet the findings do not necessarily apply to mild forms of emotional distress and non-pathological drinking [13].…”

Alcohol use and Depression During Adolescence and Young Adulthood: a Summary and Interpretation of Mixed Findings

“…One longitudinal study that focused only on the adolescent years found that higher frequency of alcohol use during early adolescence was associated with MDD during late adolescence 33 . Several studies including assessments from adolescence until young adulthood have consistently shown that AUD and sub-threshold AUD during adolescence predicts MDD during adolescence and during early adulthood 34–37 .…”

Chronic intermittent ethanol exposure during adolescence: Effects on stress-induced social alterations and social drinking in adulthood

“…Indeed, early onset of drinking has been found to be predictive of alcohol-related problems later in life (Grant & Dawson, 1997; Palmer et al, 2009), with those engaging in even episodic heavy drinking at an early age being more likely to develop alcohol use disorders (Bonomo et al, 2004; Hingson et al, 2006; Grant et al, 2001) and to experience a number of long-lasting adverse psychosocial consequences (Wells et al, 2004). Although these associations are not necessarily causal (Black et al, 2015; Edwards et al, 2014), evidence is emerging that binge patterns of adolescent drinking that bring blood alcohol levels to 80 mg/dl and higher can be disruptive to the developing adolescent brain (Bava & Tapert, 2010; Silveri, 2012; Spear, 2015). …”