Adult Substance Use Varies among Hispanic Populations
Substance Use among Hispanic Adults, a recent NSDUH report from SAMHSA shows significant differences in rates of substance use among various Hispanic adult populations.
- Adults of Spanish origin have a level of past-month alcohol use 50 percent higher than the rate for adults of Dominican origin (60.8 versus 40.3 percent).
- Similarly, the rate of current illicit drug use among adults of Spanish origin is over three times higher than the level among adults of Dominican origin (13.1 versus 3.9 percent).
- Current binge drinking rates among Hispanic adult populations range from a high of 28.7 percent among adults of Puerto Rican origin to a low of 20.8 percent among adults of Central or South American heritage.
The study also shows that U.S.-born Hispanic adults have much higher substance use rates than Hispanic adults born outside the U.S.
For example, the past-month alcohol use rate among U.S.-born Hispanic adults is over 50 percent higher than among their foreign-born counterparts (57.7 versus 37.2 percent).
The past-month illicit drug use level among U.S.-born Hispanic adults is more than triple the rate found among foreign-born Hispanic adults (11.3 versus 3.0 percent).
These higher rates among U.S. born Hispanic adults generally held within each age group examined.
Substance Use among Hispanic Adults is based on data drawn from the 2004 to 2008 NSDUHs.
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* Estimates for the “Other, Hispanic” subgroup were suppressed due to low precision.
Source: SAMHSA Office of Applied Studies (May 27, 2010). Figure 3. Past-Month Substance Use among Hispanic Adults, by Hispanic Subgroup*: 2004 to 2008. Substance Use among Hispanic Adults. Rockville, MD.
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