Examining Differences in Alcohol and Smoking Behaviors between Parenting and Nonparenting Lesbian Women

The transition to parenthood is a significant life event that has implications for health behaviors and health. Few studies have examined alcohol use and smoking by parenthood status (nonparent vs. parent) among women who identify as lesbian.

This study used data from two longitudinal studies, the Chicago Health and Life Experiences of Women Study (n = 135) and the U.S. National Longitudinal Lesbian Family Study (n = 116), to compare problem drinking and cigarette smoking trajectories among lesbian-identified women by parenthood status. We used mixed models to investigate differences in problem drinking and cigarette smoking in three waves of data in each study.

Lesbian parents reported significantly less problem drinking, but not cigarette smoking, than nonparent lesbian women. When considering the interaction between parental status and time, problem drinking was significantly higher among nonparents than parents at each time interval.

Parenthood was associated with positive changes in drinking among lesbian women; however, more research is needed to understand how to support smoking cessation among parenting lesbian women.