Patterns of tobacco and alcohol use among sedentary, exercising, nonathletic, and athletic youth

Through a statewide random design, 7,846 9th to 12th grade students in 81 South Carolina public schools were selected to complete the Youth Risk Behavior Survey. Mantel-Haenszel Chi-Square, general linear models, and logistic regression were used to examine the relation between the independent variables of race, gender, and physical activity status with the dependent variables of tobacco and alcohol use while controlling for race, gender, and participation in physical education classes. The six physical activity levels ranged from sedentary nonathletes to athletes participating on two or more sports teams. Highly active athletes drank more frequently than did low-activity nonathletes (p = .002) and sedentary nonathletes (p = .006), and they were more likely to binge drink (p = .004). Athletic groups were less likely to smoke than were the nonathletic groups (p < .0001) with "sedentary nonathletes" the heaviest smokers of all groups. Athletes were more likely to use smokeless tobacco (p < .0001) than nonathletes although this difference disappeared when controlling for gender and race. This research supports other findings about prevalence of smokeless tobacco use among athletic youth. In addition, it reveals that athletic youth are at an increased risk of alcohol use and binge drinking. Possible factors such as the risk-taking tendencies of team sport athletes should be investigated.