Age of Drinking Onset and Unintentional Injury Involvement After Drinking

• NCJ Number: 188373
• Author(s): R. Hingson Sc.D.; T. Heeren; J. Howland Ph.D.; A. Jamanka M.P.H
• Date Published: January 2001
• Length: 22 pages
• Grant Number(s): DTNH22-98-D-15079
• Sponsoring Agency: US Dept of Transportation National Highway Traffic Safety Admin
• Corporate Author: Boston University School of Public Health
• Sale Source: US Dept of Transportation National Highway Traffic Safety Admin; NCJRS Photocopy Services
• Publication Format: Book (Softbound)
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study assessed whether persons who began drinking at younger ages were more likely to report unintentional injuries under the influence of alcohol.

Abstract

This study explored whether early age of drinking onset was related to respondents drinking heavily, placing themselves in situations that increased their risk of injury, and having experienced an unintentional injury after they had started drinking. The study used data from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism 1992 national survey consisting of 42,862 respondents. Respondents were questioned about when they started drinking and unintentional injuries they received while under the influence of alcohol. Study results showed that respondents who began drinking at younger ages were much more likely than those who did not start drinking until they were 21 or older to report heavy drinking both in the year prior to the survey and during their period of heaviest drinking. Those drinking prior to age 14 were more than 3 times more likely to report consuming five or more drinks on a single day, at least once per week during the past year. They were 7 times more likely to report drinking enough to be intoxicated at least once per week. The relationship between early age of drinking onset and injury involvement under the influences was found not only over the course of the respondent’s life but in the year prior to the survey. Persons who started drinking prior to age 18 were also significantly more likely to place themselves in situations after drinking that increased their risk of injury. The study cautioned that the results were based on self-report in a cross sectional survey, data was collected at one point in time. In summation, the study indicated that early onset of drinking increased frequent heavy drinking which in turn heightens the risk of alcohol related injuries among persons under the legal drinking age of 21 and among adults over age 21 for all drinkers. Those who began drinking at an early age reported more often placing themselves in situations after drinking that increased risk of injury. This study identified important new reasons to expand clinical, educational, legal, and community interventions that delay onset drinking. References, tables, and graphs