Alcohol Use Disorder and Parental Alcohol Use Disorder as Predictors of Reproductive Timing

Research suggests associations between adolescent alcohol use and early reproduction, but other findings show that alcohol use disorder (AUD) may actually predict delayed reproduction. However, most studies generally do not consider the effects of parental AUD, which is correlated with AUD and may influence reproductive timing. The present study addressed these gaps by testing whether the individual's own AUD and parental AUD interacted with sex to predict reproductive timing.

In a longitudinally followed community sample that oversampled familial alcohol disorder (n = 776), multinomial logistic regressions estimated the effects of predictors on early (i.e., adolescent), delayed (age 25 years or later), and no reproduction, thus comparing the odds of each timing category to typical age of reproduction (i.e., 19-24 years of age).

There were no interactions between either individual or parental AUD and sex, so interaction terms were trimmed. Individuals with parental AUD were more likely to reproduce early, but there was no effect of AUD on early reproduction. However, those with AUD were more likely to have delayed reproductive timing or no children.

AUD and parental AUD are unique predictors of reproductive timing. Parental AUD was associated with early reproduction. Children of parents with AUD may be vulnerable to sexual risk behaviors in adolescence regardless of their own AUD diagnosis, given the constellation of personality and environmental risk factors associated with parental AUD. In contrast, replicating prior findings, AUD was associated with delayed reproduction and the absence of reproduction. AUD may delay reproductive onset through either biological or psychosocial mediators, such as delays in role transitions.