Alcohol Use and Cigarette Smoking During Pregnancy Among American Indians/Alaska Natives

Abstract

Previous research states that American Indian/Alaska Native pregnant women exhibit high rates of alcohol use and smoking. The current study uses the National Survey of Drug Use and Health (2005–2009) to update and expand on this literature. Results reveal lower rates of alcohol use and, with compositional controls, lower rates of smoking for American Indian/Alaska Native pregnant women compared with pregnant women of other racial/ethnic groups. These findings support social–structural explanations of substance use among American Indian/Alaska Native pregnant women and refute commonly offered cultural arguments that alcohol use and smoking reflect something that is “uniquely Indian.”