Abstract
This study evaluated the influence of Oral Health-Related Quality of Life (OHRQoL) on the consumption of alcohol and cigarette use in adolescents. This prospective cohort began in 2012 (T1) with an initial random sample of 1134 12-year-old adolescents followed for 6 years in Santa Maria, southern Brazil. The present study comprised data from the two cohort reassessments that took place in 2014 (T2) and 2018 (T3). OHRQoL was measured with the Brazilian short version of the Child Perceptions Questionnaire (CPQ11-14) at T2. Socioeconomic, demographic, and oral health measures were also collected during this period. Alcohol and cigarette consumption (regular use) in the past 30 days was evaluated at T3 through questions in the of the National School Health Survey (PeNSE) questionnaire. A multilevel Poisson regression model was used to evaluate the influence of predictor variables on substance use. Of the 770 adolescents at T2, 575 and 576 adolescents were reassessed at T3 for alcohol and cigarette consumption, respectively. Adolescents with higher overall CPQ11-14 scores were at higher risk for regular consumption of alcohol (IRR 1.01; 95% CI 1.01-1.02) and cigarette (IRR 1.04; 95% CI 1.03-1.05). Non-white adolescents with low socioeconomic status, untreated dental caries, and who had not been to the dentist (last 6 months) were also associated with increased regular consumption of licit substances. Adolescents with worse OHRQoL presented a higher consumption of alcohol and cigarette. These findings are useful for planning public health strategies to improve adolescent OHRQoL and reduce the harmful substance use.
Highlights
Licit drugs are the most widely used harmful substances in the world, represented by cigarettes and alcohol, and are one of the greatest public health problems in both low- and high-income countries.[1]
Of the 1,134 adolescents assessed at baseline, 770 (67.9% retention rate) and 768 (67.7% retention rate) participants were re-evaluated at took place in 2014 (T2) and T3, respectively
Only those participants who were evaluated in both T2 and T3 were considered in this study (4 years of follow-up)
Summary
Licit drugs are the most widely used harmful substances in the world, represented by cigarettes and alcohol, and are one of the greatest public health problems in both low- and high-income countries.[1] This consumption begins in adolescence, a transitional phase that favors the emergence of vulnerable and susceptible behaviors that can lead to the adoption of habits that are harmful to health.[1] In Brazil, the prevalence of alcohol and cigarette use among adolescents aged 10-19 years reaches. Sociocultural, environmental, and psychological factors have been identified as key theoretical pathways for the explanation of licit drug use in adolescence.[3] Psychosocial factors are considered to be additional determinants of harmful substance use, which receive great attention due to their relationship with health risk behaviors.[4] Psychosocial factors are guided by psychosocial theory, which is concerned with the ways in which individuals perceive social inequities and the effects of these perceptions on health. The quality of life of an adolescent is associated with resilience to life’s challenges and the establishment of health-related behaviors and healthy interpersonal relationships.[5]
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