Stressors experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic and substance use among US college students

• Published in: Drug and alcohol dependence reports Vol. 1; p. 100005
• Main Authors: Oh, Hans, Leventhal, Adam M., Tam, Christina C., Rajkumar, Ravi, Zhou, Sasha, Clapp, John D.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier B.V 01-12-2021; The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V; Elsevier
• Subjects: Alcohol; Cigarettes; COVID-19; Marijuana; Pandemic; COVID-19; Alcohol; Marijuana; Pandemic; Cigarettes
• ISSN: 2772-7246; 2772-7246
• DOI: 10.1016/j.dadr.2021.100005

•During the pandemic, about 46.89% of the sample reported drinking any alcohol (in the past 2 weeks), 7.38% used any cigarettes, and 16.87% used any marijuana.•COVID-19 infection and caregiving were significantly associated with alcohol use.•Racial/ethnic discrimination and financial distress were associated with smoking cigarettes.•COVID-19 concern and COVID-19 infection were associated with marijuana use.
The COVID-19 pandemic caused numerous stressors that may have been linked to substance use among college students.
We analyzed data from the Fall 2020 Healthy Minds Study (N = 15,995), a non-probability sample of students attending one of 28 universities, who completed an online survey during the COVID-19 pandemic (September – December 2020). Using multivariable logistic regression, we examined the associations between COVID-19 stressors (concern, racial/ethnic discrimination, financial distress, infection, illness of loved one, death of loved one, caregiving) and substance use (alcohol, cigarette, marijuana), adjusting for age, gender, race/ethnicity, and international student status. All COVID-19 stressors were included in the same weighted logistic regression models.
About 46.89% of the sample reported drinking any alcohol (in the past 2 weeks), 7.38% used any cigarettes, and 16.87% used any marijuana over the past month. Multivariable logistic regression models showed that infection and caregiving were significantly associated with alcohol use; racial/ethnic discrimination and financial distress were associated with smoking cigarettes; and concern and infection were associated with marijuana use.
COVID-19 stressors were related to substance use, though the strength and significance of the associations varied depending on the stressors and the type of substance.