Substance use patterns in 9-10 year olds: Baseline findings from the adolescent brain cognitive development (ABCD)...

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Developmental Psychology
• Public Health

Background:

• The Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study follows over 11,800 youth into early adulthood.
• It investigates the impact of substance use (SU) on neurocognitive and health outcomes.
• Little is known about SU patterns in children under 12.

Purpose of the Study:

• To report detailed baseline SU patterns in the ABCD Study cohort.
• To inform the scientific community about early SU in this population.
• To examine associations between early caffeine/alcohol use and demographic/clinical factors.

Main Methods:

• Descriptive analysis of baseline SU patterns (n=11,875).
• Mixed-effects regression models were used.
• Examined associations with demographics, externalizing symptoms, and parental AUD/SUD history.

Main Results:

• 67.6% of youth used caffeine; 22.5% reported sipping alcohol.
• Other drug use was rare (<1%).
• Caffeine use and alcohol sipping associated with demographics, externalizing symptoms, and parental AUD.

Conclusions:

• ABCD Study participants (9-10 years) reported caffeine use and alcohol sipping, with rare use of other substances.
• Early caffeine and alcohol use are linked to various factors.
• These early patterns should be examined in future longitudinal analyses of SU trajectories.