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Alcohol‐Induced Blackouts as Predictors of Other Drinking Related Harms Among Emerging Young Adults
Author(s) -
Hingson Ralph,
Zha Wenxing,
SimonsMorton Bruce,
White Aaron
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
alcoholism: clinical and experimental research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.267
H-Index - 153
eISSN - 1530-0277
pISSN - 0145-6008
DOI - 10.1111/acer.13010
Subject(s) - blackout , medicine , logistic regression , demography , injury prevention , binge drinking , occupational safety and health , suicide prevention , alcohol consumption , poison control , incidence (geometry) , bivariate analysis , human factors and ergonomics , demographics , alcohol , environmental health , psychology , power (physics) , physics , biochemistry , electric power system , chemistry , pathology , quantum mechanics , sociology , optics , statistics , mathematics
Background Alcohol‐related blackouts are periods of amnesia that reflect the failure of the brain to record memories of what transpires while drinking. This paper examined the incidence, predictors, and behavioral correlates of blackouts among emerging adults and examined whether questions about blackouts could serve as better markers of risk for other alcohol related harms than questions about levels of consumption. Methods In 2012 to 2013, 1,463 (68%) of 2,140 respondents 1‐year past high school reported having consumed alcohol. They were asked whether, in the past 6 months because of drinking, they forgot where they were or what they did. The survey also explored demographics, substance use behaviors, and other alcohol‐related problems in the past 6 months. Chi‐square and logistic regression analyses explored bivariate and multivariate predictors of blackouts and other alcohol‐related problems. Results Twenty percent of respondents who ever drank alcohol reported a blackout in the past 6 months. Blackouts were more prevalent among females and those who, in the past 30 days, used multiple drugs, more frequently binged, were drunk, smoked, had lower body weight, and lived in college dorms. After controlling for drinking levels, having a blackout was the strongest independent predictor of most other alcohol problems examined, including in the past 6 months because of drinking, missing class or work, getting behind in work or school, doing something respondents later regretted, arguing with friends, experiencing an overdose, and total number of alcohol problems reported. It was also an independent predictor of hangovers, damaging property, getting hurt, and trouble with police. Conclusions Because blackouts indicate drinking at levels that result in significant cognitive and behavioral impairment, questions about blackouts could serve as important, simple screeners for the risk of experiencing other alcohol related harms. Additional work on this subject is warranted.