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Affiliation
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Department of Pharmacy, Health and Nutritional Sciences, University of Calabria, Cosenza, Italy. |
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Abstract
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BACKGROUND: The aims of this study were to measure the extent of alcohol use among a sample of early adolescents and provide information on factors influencing alcohol consumption in early adolescents.
METHODS: Data were collected via self-administered anonymous questionnaires from 1520 middle school students [mean age of 13.1 years (range 12-15 years)], who were recruited from a random sample of public schools in Calabria Region, Italy.
RESULTS: A total of 1032 participants completed the survey for a response rate of 68%. Nearly 70% of respondents had drunk at least once during their life, and 16.7% reported consuming alcohol during the 30 days before the survey. Multivariate analysis showed that the factors associated with the consumption of alcohol were being male (OR 0.58, 95% CI 0.41-0.80), being older (OR 1.88, 95% CI 1.37-2.56), living in a urban area (OR 0.29, 95% CI 0.21-0.40), reporting a sad self-perceived mood (OR 2.76, 95% CI 1.87-4.48), reporting parental drinking habits (OR 7.11, 95% CI 5.02-10.08) and not considering alcohol use an unhealthy behavior (OR 2.43, 95% CI 1.11-5.31).
CONCLUSION: Alcohol use among early adolescents is widespread. Multi-component interventions are required in order to reduce average levels of alcohol drinking among early adolescents.Pediatric Research accepted article preview online, 28 August 2017. doi:10.1038/pr.2017.206.
Language: en |