Does Drinking Frequency Matter?: Understanding the Relationship between Alcohol Use, Sexual Risk, and Prior Abuse Among African-American Adolescent Females

Background: Few studies have investigated whether frequency of alcohol use is associated with differences in sexual behavior or linked to past abuse. Thus, this study examined the association between alcohol use frequency and sexual risk engagement and prior abuse among African American female adolescents. Methods: 701 African-American adolescent females (aged 14-20 years) completed ACASI interviews with measures of substance use, sexual behaviors, and abuse history prior to participating in an STD/HIV prevention trial. Of those reporting alcohol use in the past 90 days (n = 362), bivariate and logistic regression analyses compared the lowest frequency drinkers (lowest quartile: 1 day of drinking: n = 81) and highest frequency drinkers (highest quartile: 7 or more days drinking: n = 75). Results: In logistic regression analyses controlling for age, high frequency drinkers had more sexual partners (AOR = 1.45, p = .015) and more sexual encounters while high or drunk in the last 90 days (AOR = 1.14, p = .009). There were no differences in condom use or STDs. More frequent drinkers also reported higher rates of past smoking (AOR = 6.59, p = .001) and emotional abuse (AOR = 2.47, p = .012) and physical abuse histories (AOR = 2.11, p = .030). Discussion: Results suggest more frequent drinkers may engage in greater sexual risk behaviors and be more likely to smoke cigarettes. Prior abuse was also more prevalent among frequent drinkers. Multi-faceted interventions to address alcohol use, sexual risk, and previous abuse are needed for African American female adolescents.