Crossing a Border for a Low-Cost, High-Risk Environment: Smoking Status and Excessive Drinking among Young Adults in Tijuana

Abstract

This study examines the drinking and smoking behavior of 2,311 college-age adults traveling from San Diego, California, to Tijuana, Mexico (December 2006 to December 2008). We describe this Border sample's drinking history and smoking status and estimate multivariate models of evening drinking participation and, conditional on drinking, blood alcohol concentration. Noting limitations, we present implications for identifying young adults at high risk for alcohol and tobacco use, particularly females, and lay the foundation for further research examining young adults’ alcohol and tobacco use in reduced price scenarios.

RÉSUMÉ

L’Institut National de L’Abuse d’Alcool et l’Alcoolisme a financé ce recherche.

Cette étude examine la consommation d’alcool et de tabac chez 2,311 adultes d’âge universitaire voyageant de San Diego, Californie à Tijuana, Mexique (décembre 2006 à décembre 2008). Nous décrivons les antécédents de consommation d’alcool et de tabac dans cet échantillon de la frontière et estimons des modèles multivariables de la consommation nocturne d’alcool, et en fonction de cette consommation, de la concentration d’alcool dans le sang. En notant les limitations de l’étude, nous présentons les implications pour l’identification de jeunes adultes à risque élevé d’usage d’alcool et de tabac, en particulier chez les femmes, et établissons une fondation pour de futurs projets de recherche qui examineront la consommation d’alcool et de tabac chez les jeunes adultes dans des situations où les prix sont réduits.

Mots clés: consommation d’alcool risqué; l’alcool; fumant; tabac; l’épidémiologie; jeunes adultes.

RESUMEN

El presente trabajo estudia el consumo de alcohol y tabaco por parte de 2,311 jóvenes de edad universitaria quienes viajan en grupos desde San Diego, California hacia Tijuana, México (de Diciembre 2006 a Diciembre 2008). Describimos patrones de consumo alcohólico y de cigarrillo, y estimamos modelos multivariados de nivel de consumo alcohólico. A pesar de las limitaciones propias de toda información obtenida por encuestas, el artículo discute las implicaciones que emanan de la identificación de jóvenes que muestran un riesgo alto de consumo de alcohol y tabaco, en particular el que enfrentan las mujeres relativo a la población general, y con el objetivo de diseñar materiales educativos e intevenciones breves para reducir la preponderancia de comportamientos de riesgo en esta población. Este estudio fue solventado por el National Institute on Alcohol and Alcoholism.

Keywords: consumo de alcohol, alcohol, cigarrillo, tabaco; epidemiología, jóvenes

Keywords :

• risky drinking
• alcohol
• smoking
• tobacco
• epidemiology
• young adults

THE AUTHORS

Dr. Mumford has studied trajectories of adolescent smoking and concurrent use of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco, in addition to the role of tobacco control policies in reducing smoking prevalence. In addition to this work funded by NIAAA, Dr. Mumford's research has been funded by NIDA and a CDC Prevention Center Development Award. Prior to entering the field of smoking research, Dr. Mumford worked in international reproductive health policy and U.S.–Japan educational outreach and exchange. Dr. Mumford conducted this research while at PIRE, but has moved into a new position as a Senior Research Scientist at NORC at the University of Chicago.

Joseph G. Gitchell has coordinated the consulting efforts of international scientific experts, and supported regulatory initiatives, including OTC switches, and marketing plans for significant products in the United States, Europe, Latin America, and Asia. A co-author on several articles, he has been published in journals including Tobacco Control, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, Preventive Medicine, and Archives of Internal Medicine. He has managed five national health policy conferences with representatives from the research community, government policy and scientific agencies, and for-profit and non-for-profit organizations. He also directed the subsequent publication of the peer-reviewed proceedings. Joe serves as a Vice President and Director of Program Operations at Pinney Associates.

Dr. Kelley-Baker has developed and directed several research projects in the fields of alcohol use/abuse prevention and traffic safety, including binge drinking, underage drinking, and impaired driving. She is the Principal Investigator on a study examining the links between alcohol/drug use and victimization of young women who cross the U.S. border to visit the bars of Tijuana, Mexico, which led to the development and testing of an intervention to improve their safety through raising awareness and promoting group responsibility. Dr. Kelley-Baker also manages and contributes to a variety of traffic safety projects, including an NIAAA project examining factors affecting the rate of BAC test refusals on the arrest and conviction of drunk drivers in the United States (Principal Investigator); the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) funded evaluation of New Mexico's comprehensive state impaired driving program; and the NHTSA evaluation of Montgomery County's Extra Eyes Citizen's DUI reporting program (Principal Investigator). In addition, Dr. Kelley-Baker serves as Co-Principal Investigator on the NHTSA National Roadside Survey, the objective of which is to determine the estimated incidence of alcohol and drugged driving on our nation's roadways. These studies have contributed to the debate influencing legislative changes concerning drunk–driving laws in our nation.

Dr. Romano is an Associate Research Scientist at PIRE. He has been at PIRE since 1998. He contributes to research projects as an Economist, Statistician, and Epidemiologist. His work has dealt with a variety of risk-reducing projects. Dr. Romano has been involved in the estimation of incidence and cost of national and state intentional and unintentional injuries and the evaluation of alcohol-related and tobacco policies. Dr. Romano is currently working on the analysis of the 2007 National Roadside Survey. Funded by the NIAAA, Dr. Romano has done research on the vulnerability of Latinos and other minority groups to fatal motor vehicle crashes. His interest in special populations has allowed Dr. Romano recently to obtain funding from the NICHD to research on the vulnerability of young female drivers to impaired driving and motor vehicle crashes.