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Title: Association Between Adolescent Substance Use and Obesity in Young Adulthood: A Group-based Dual Trajectory Analysis
Resulting in 1 citation.
1. Huang, David Y.C.
Lanza, H. Isabella
Anglin, M. Douglas
Association Between Adolescent Substance Use and Obesity in Young Adulthood: A Group-based Dual Trajectory Analysis
Addictive Behaviors 38,11 (November 2013): 2653-2660.
Also: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306460313001846
Cohort(s): Children of the NLSY79, NLSY79 Young Adult
Publisher: Elsevier
Keyword(s): Alcohol Use; Body Mass Index (BMI); Family Income; Modeling, Biometric; Modeling, Trajectory analysis; Obesity; Smoking (see Cigarette Use); Substance Use; Weight

Purpose: This study investigated whether and how trajectories of substance use in adolescence were associated with obesity trajectories in young adulthood. We hypothesized that: (1) exposure to persistent substance use throughout adolescence may heighten obesity risk in young adulthood; and (2) such associations may differ once gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and obesity status in adolescence, are considered.

Methods: The study included 5141 adolescents from the child sample of the 1979 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth and utilized biennial data across the 12 assessments (1986–2008) to examine trajectories of substance use behaviors (i.e., cigarette smoking, alcohol use, and marijuana use) from ages 12 to 18 and obesity trajectories from ages 20 to 24. Group-based dual trajectory modeling was applied to examine sequential associations of trajectories of each type of substance use behavior with obesity trajectories.

Results: Three distinctive trajectory patterns were respectively identified for cigarette smoking, alcohol use, and marijuana use from ages 12 to 18, as well as for obesity status (BMI ≥ 30) from ages 20 to 24. Taking into account gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and obesity status in adolescence, adolescents with the most problematic smoking trajectory (High-decreasing) were more likely to exhibit a High-obesity trajectory from ages 20 to 24. Also, adolescents with an Increasing marijuana use trajectory were more likely to exhibit an Increased obesity trajectory in young adulthood.

Conclusions: The current study demonstrates that adolescent substance use is associated with subsequent obesity in young adulthood. The associations appear to differ based on the type of substance use and patterns of use.

Bibliography Citation
Huang, David Y.C., H. Isabella Lanza and M. Douglas Anglin. "Association Between Adolescent Substance Use and Obesity in Young Adulthood: A Group-based Dual Trajectory Analysis." Addictive Behaviors 38,11 (November 2013): 2653-2660.