New Research Finds Adolescent Drinkers and Drug Users Die Younger

Each week, the Higher Education Center showcases recent developments in the field of AOD abuse and violence prevention in higher education that may include new data and resources, upcoming events and programs, funding opportunities, and learning opportunities. To see a listing of previous This Week! features, visit the This Week! archive.

August 8, 2008

Adolescent substance abuse disorders are a predictor of young adult mortality, new research from the University of Pittsburgh concludes.

Researchers found that young adult males with substance abuse disorders had a mortality rate far in excess of the norm for their non-addicted contemporaries. For example, 2 percent of the adolescents studied had died by the time the eight-year study period ended, including 23 percent of the African American males in the study.

“The fact that these were, to an extent, predictable deaths raises additional concerns about the hazards of alcohol and drug problems in teens and young adults,” said Duncan B. Clark, corresponding author of the study.

The study appeared in the June 2008 issue of the Journal of Adolescent Health.

For more information, read the press release or visit the journal’s Web site.