Teenage drinking and the onset of alcohol dependence: A cohort study over seven years

Abstract

Aim: To determine whether adolescent alcohol use and/or other adolescent health risk behaviour predisposes to alcohol dependence in young adulthood. Design Seven-wave cohort study over 6 years. Participant: A community sample of almost two thousand individuals followed from ages 14-15 to 20-21 years. Outcome measure: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual volume IV (DSM-IV) alcohol dependence in participants aged 20-21 years and drinking three or more times a week. Findings: Approximately 90% of participants consumed alcohol by age 20 years, 4.7% fulfilling DSM-IV alcohol dependence criteria. Alcohol dependence in young adults was preceded by higher persisting teenage rates of frequent drinking [..