An Association of Adverse Childhood Experiences with Binge Drinking in Adulthood: Findings from a Population-Based Study

Abstract

Background: Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are a major public health issue linked to negative health outcomes. Yet, few recent studies drawing on national data have examined the association between ACEs and binge drinking. Objective: The objective of this study was to examine the association between ACEs and binge drinking among adults in the United States and whether this association is dependent on sex. Methods: Data for this study were obtained from the 2019 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System survey. An analytic sample of 41,322 adults aged 18–64 years (50.7% male) from 17 states was analyzed using binary logistic regression. The outcome variable was binge drinking, and the main explanatory variable was ACEs. Results: Of the 41,322 respondents, 21.3% engaged in binge drinking. About 30% of the respondents had no ACEs and 23.9% had four or more ACEs. In the multivariable logistic regression, we observed that sex moderated the association between ACEs and binge drinking. Odds were 1.36 times higher for females who experienced two ACEs (aOR = 1.36 p < .05, 95% CI = 1.04–1.77) and 1.58 times higher for females who experienced three ACEs (aOR = 1.58 p < .01, 95% CI = 1.17–2.12) to engage in binge drinking. Other factors associated with binge drinking include younger age, non-Hispanic White, higher income level, higher education, not being married, being overweight, and history of cigarette smoking. Conclusion: The findings of this study underscore the importance of developing sex-appropriate screening and intervention strategies to support individuals exposed to ACEs and potentially mitigate negative health outcomes later in life.

Keywords:

• Binge drinking
• alcohol use
• adverse childhood experiences
• sex differences
• risk factors

Acknowledgments

This paper is based on public data from the 2019 Brief Risk Factor Surveillance Survey (BRFSS) collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The views and opinions expressed in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of CDC or that of its partners. Dr. Baiden had full access to the data and takes responsibility for the integrity of the data and the accuracy of the data analysis.

Declaration of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the article.

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.