Substance and Behavioral Addictions among American Indian and Alaska Native Populations.

Claradina Soto,Amy E West,Guadalupe G Ramos,Jennifer B Unger

doi:10.3390/ijerph19052974

Abstract

Objective: This paper examines substance and behavioral addictions among American Indian and Alaska Natives (AIAN) to identify the structural and psychosocial risk and cultural protective factors that are associated with substance use and behavioral addictions. Methods: Five databases were used to search for peer reviewed articles through December 2021 that examined substance and behavioral addictions among AIANs. Results: The literature search identified 69 articles. Numerous risk factors (i.e., life stressors, severe trauma, family history of alcohol use) and protective factors (i.e., ethnic identity, family support) influence multiple substance (i.e., commercial tobacco, alcohol, opioid, stimulants) and behavioral (e.g., gambling) addictions. Conclusions: There is a dearth of research on behavioral addictions among AIANs. Unique risk factors in AIAN communities such as historical trauma and socioeconomic challenges have interfered with traditional cultural resilience factors and have increased the risk of behavioral addictions. Future research on resilience factors and effective prevention and treatment interventions could help AIANs avoid behavioral addictions.

Highlights

Substance-related poisonings and deaths have increased among American Indians and Alaska Natives (AIAN) [1]
Risk and protective factors for substance use exist at multiple domains [14] and will be discussed
This article provides a review of addictions among AIANs, but the sparse literature on this population only includes substance use and gambling addiction

Summary

Introduction

Substance-related poisonings and deaths have increased among American Indians and Alaska Natives (AIAN) [1]. Deaths attributed to alcohol increased significantly at a rate of 4.0% per year from 2000–2017; this increase was highest for AIANs compared to Whites and other ethnic and racial groups [1]. More recent analysis found that in 2019, the alcohol-involved death rate among AIANs was five times higher than that in the general population, at 50.5 deaths and 10.4 deaths per 1,000,000, respectively [3]. This rate was 64% higher than it was in 2006, when the rate was 30.8 deaths per 100,000 [3]. Depression, and the number of negative life events were significant predictors of substance and/or behavioral addictions [83]. These findings underscore the need for additional research on the comorbidity of substance and behavioral addictions as well as the occurrence of multiple behavioral addictions

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Methods

Results

Conclusion