The predictive power of family history measures of alcohol and drug problems and internalizing disorders in a college population

Abstract

A family history (FH) of psychiatric and substance use problems is a potent risk factor for common internalizing and externalizing disorders. In a large web-based assessment of mental health in college students, we developed a brief set of screening questions for a FH of alcohol problems (AP), drug problems (DP) and depression-anxiety in four classes of relatives (father, mother, aunts/uncles/grandparents, and siblings) as reported by the student. Positive reports of a history of AP, DP, and depression-anxiety were substantially correlated within relatives. These FH measures predicted in the student, in an expected pattern, dimensions of personality and impulsivity, alcohol consumption and problems, smoking and nicotine dependence, use of illicit drugs, and symptoms of depression and anxiety. Using the mean score from the four classes of relatives was more predictive than using a familial/sporadic dichotomy. Interactions were seen between the FH of AP, DP, and depression-anxiety and peer deviance in predicting symptoms of alcohol and tobacco dependence. As the students aged, the FH of AP became a stronger predictor of alcohol problems. While we cannot directly assess the validity of these FH reports, the pattern of findings suggest that our brief screening items were able to assess, with some accuracy, the FH of substance misuse and internalizing psychiatric disorders in relatives. If correct, these measures can play an important role in the creation of developmental etiologic models for substance and internalizing psychiatric disorders which constitute one of the central goals of the overall project.

Alcohol effects on the epigenome in the germline: Role in the inheritance of alcohol-related pathology

“…Having a parent or other relative with an AUD increases the risk for and the severity of alcohol abuse (Cotton, 1979; Kendler et al, 2015; Morean, Corbin, Sinha, & O’Malley, 2009; Sjoerds et al, 2013; Turner et al, 1993; Worobec et al, 1990), although environmental and social factors alongside genetic factors play a role in this relationship (Enoch & Goldman, 1999; Hill et al, 1994; Nieratschker, Batra, & Fallgatter, 2013). The heritability of alcohol dependence is estimated to be between 30%–70% as estimated from studies of twins, in which one twin was separated from the other and adopted, thus controlling the effects of similar environment (Agrawal & Lynskey, 2008).…”

Effects of social support on the association between precollege sexual assault and college-onset victimization

“…The same pattern was seen for these demographic parameters across all subsequent models, with African American race becoming significantly predictive in Models 2 and 3 ( p <.05). The protective effects associated with Asian and African American race are likely related to the decreased rates of heavy drinking that have been seen in these groups compared to White individuals within the S4S sample 53 . In Model 2 (see row 3 of Table 1), pre-college SA significantly predicted increased risk of college-onset victimization ( p <.001).…”

Preconception Alcohol Increases Offspring Vulnerability to Stress

“…The results presented here suggest the intriguing, and potentially alarming, possibility that exposure to alcohol produces transmissible long-lasting epigenetic changes that result in profound alterations to the physiology of the offspring. In this regard, it is interesting to note that increased anxiety in humans is often correlated with alcohol consumption and that alcohol use/abuse does run in families (Kendler et al, 2015;Sjoerds et al, 2013;Morean et al, 2009). These human data tie the data of our present study in animal model in a translational way.…”