Alcohol-dependent Parents Research Articles

The search for genes related to a low-level response to alcohol determined by alcohol challenges.

A low level of response (LR) to alcohol seems to relate to a substantial proportion of the risk for alcoholism and to have significant heritability. This report describes the results of a genome-wide segregation analysis for the first 139 pairs of full siblings by using an alcohol challenge protocol as a direct measure of LR. Subjects from 18 to 29 years old were selected if the original screen indicated they had an alcohol-dependent parent, reported a personal history of drinking but had no evidence of alcohol dependence, and had a full sibling with similar characteristics. Body sway and Subjective High Assessment Scale scores were measured at baseline and at regular intervals after the administration of a measured dose of alcohol. Participants and available parents were genotyped for 811 microsatellite markers, and resulting data were analyzed with a variance component method. Nine chromosome regions with logarithm of the odds ratio (LOD) between 2.2 and 3.2 were identified; several had previously been implicated regarding phenotypes relevant to alcoholism and the LR to alcohol. Several regions identified in the previous linkage study by using a retrospective self-report questionnaire were potentially confirmed by this study. The strongest evidence was on chromosomes 10, 11, and 22. Several chromosomal areas seem to relate to the low LR to alcohol as a risk factor for alcohol dependence.

The Life of Adolescents of Alcoholic Fathers

A phenomenological methodology was used to identify the life of adolescents of alcoholic fathers. Nine adolescents participated in in-depth interviews, done between October and December 2001. The Colaizzi's method was used for data analysis.The results of this study are as follows.Two themes and thirteen meanings were identified. The first theme is Living Alone: living abusively as partner to an alcohol dependent parents, living dangerously like an explosive fury, living as an object that has no self, living with rejection of fatherly being, living with felt responsibility but having no power to help mother who suffers patiently with pain and abuse, living alone with no shoulder to lean on, and living with the prejudice of sex discrimination. The second theme is sustaining life. The meanings are ambivalence between revenge on parents and pity, struggle for desirable self against fear of parents-like image, understanding parents through self reflection, hope to find fatherly being through father's recovery, being able to stand through emotional control and cognitive restructuring, nurturing the seed of hope for the future while in a situation of desperation.The results of this study can provide a foundation for the development of programs for children of alcohol dependent parents.

A family study of the high-risk children of opioid- and alcohol-dependent parents.

In this article, the author sought to use a high-risk study design focused on the children of parents with opioid or alcohol use disorders and children of parents with no substance use disorder (SUD) to evaluate the specificity of the risk conferred by the type of parental SUD. Using structured psychiatric interviews, cognitive assessments, and measures of social, academic, and family functioning, the authors studied 96 families (187 parents and 183 children, mean age of 11.6 years). Sixteen families had parental opioid dependence (22 children, 64% male), 14 families had parental alcohol dependence (22 children; 59% male), and 66 families had no SUD (controls; 139 children; 58% male). Fifty-nine percent of children of opioid-dependent parents had at least one major psychopathological condition, compared to 41% of the alcohol group and 28% of the control group (p < 0.01). The children of opioid- and alcohol-dependent parents were of lower socioeconomic status and had significantly more diffculties in academic, social, and family functioning than did controls. Children of opioid- and alcohol-dependent parents have significantly higher rates of psychopathology as well as more difficulties in academic, social, and family functioning compared to the children of non-SUD parents. In addition, notable trends emerged for the opioid group to have more psychopathology and functional impairment than the alcohol group. With a growing consensus that certain risk factors for later SUD start in childhood with potentially treatable childhood-onset disorders, new preventive approaches for individuals at risk may be developed targeting childhood precursors of

Early onset and recent drug use among children of parents with alcohol problems: data from a national epidemiologic survey

There is good evidence that children of parents with alcohol problems have more drug involvement, plus related mental health and behavioral problems. In this study, we sought to estimate the degree to which these children might be more likely to initiate drug use precociously. A sample of 2888 parent–child pairs was identified within public data files of the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse (NHSDA), 1995–1997. Alcohol dependence of one parent was assessed by that parent's report of three or more dependence manifestations. Independently, one randomly selected 12–17 year-old child of the parent answered self-report survey questions on age at first use of tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana. In analyses contrasting 114 children of alcohol dependent parents (AD+) with 2774 other children (AD−), youths with alcohol dependent parents had higher odds than other kids to have used tobacco in the past year (odds ratio, OR=3.2, 95% confidence interval, CI=2.05–4.98), as well as alcohol (OR=1.6, 95% CI=1.05–2.50), and marijuana (OR=2.9, 95% CI=1.71–4.90). Survival analyses were used to clarify excess risk of early-onset drug use. For example, by age 17, an estimated 73% of AD+ children had smoked tobacco cigarettes, 70% had started drinking, and 41% had smoked marijuana, versus 44%, 57%, and 26% of AD− children, respectively. This new evidence helps build a case that children of parents with alcohol problems experience precocious drug use.

Confirmation That Offspring From Families With Alcohol-Dependent Individuals Have Greater Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis Activation Induced by Naloxone Compared With Offspring Without a Family History of Alcohol Dependence

Background: This study was designed to confirm our previous findings that nonalcoholic offspring from families with alcohol-dependent individuals have greater hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activation induced by opioid blockade compared with nonalcoholic subjects without a family history of alcohol dependence. Methods: Sixty-four nonalcoholic subjects aged 18 to 25 years were enrolled in the protocol. Twenty-seven subjects were offspring from families with alcohol dependence and were designated as family history–positive subjects (FHP). Thirty-seven subjects were biological offspring of non–alcohol-dependent parents and were designated as family history–negative subjects (FHN). Subjects received naloxone hydrochloride (0, 50, 125, 375, and 500 μg/kg) in double-blind, randomized order; adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) and cortisol were monitored over 120 min. Results: No hormone differences at baseline or during placebo administration were identified between FHP and FHN subjects. FHP subjects had greater ACTH and cortisol response to opioid receptor blockade induced by naloxone hydrochloride compared with FHN subjects. Conclusions: These observations confirm previous findings that differences in ACTH and cortisol dynamics between FHP and FHN subjects can be unmasked by opioid receptor blockade.

Adulthood functioning: the joint effects of parental alcoholism, gender and childhood socio‐economic stress

The popular literature has publicized the adjustment difficulties of adult children of an alcohol-dependent parent (ACOAs); however, empirical studies do not provide consistent support. We examined the impact of parental alcoholism, degree of childhood socio-economic stress and gender on three broad categories of adulthood functioning (psychopathology, socio-economic attainment and marital stability). These effects were investigated with a heterogeneous sample of 400 men and 226 women participating in studies at the University of Michigan Alcohol Research Center. Parental alcoholism and childhood socio-economic stress exerted significant independent effects on most adulthood functioning measures. Men and women differed substantially only on socio-economic attainment measures, and effects of parental alcoholism and childhood economic stress on men and women were generally similar. For marital stability, parental alcoholism and childhood socio-economic stress interacted. These results suggest that researchers who study the impact of family history for alcoholism on psychological functioning should consider other aspects of the family of origin that promote wellbeing. In addition, results of this study point to the need for more research on gender differences, protective factors that promote good adjustment and outcome measures reflecting general life adaptation.

Family history of alcoholism and childhood adversity: joint effects on alcohol consumption and dependence.

Empirical studies provide substantial evidence that having a family history of alcoholism increases the risk of developing alcohol dependence; however, some of this effect may be caused by nonspecific childhood socioeconomic adversity common in families with an alcohol-dependent parent. In this study, we examine joint effects of family history and childhood adversity within a sample of 509 men and 217 women over age 40. The measures analyzed were included in routine screening assessments for participants in various studies at the University of Michigan Alcohol Research Center. About 60% of the men and 45% of the women were alcohol-dependent. About 30% reported an alcoholic parent. Degree of family history affected drinking behavior for both men and women. There were also environmental effects on the same measures for both men and women. Childhood socioeconomic adversity was reported more frequently by participants with an alcoholic parent, but adversity effects were also shown for those with a negative family history. The risk of alcohol dependence was additively increased by a positive family history and childhood socioeconomic adversity. The environmental effects identified in this study are promising evidence for nonspecific factors that moderate family history risk for development of alcohol problems.

The child and adolescent offspring of drug- and alcohol-dependent parents

Despite the high prevalence of the psychoactive substance use disorders (PSUD) in adults, relatively little is known about their child and adolescent offspring. A review of recent studies of these children shows them to be at increased risk for temperamental, personality, PSUD, and non-PSUD psychiat

Young-adult children of alcoholic parents: protective effects of positive family functioning.

The occurrence of alcoholism is clustered within families, but the detrimental effect of a positive family history may vary with the degree of family impairment involved. In this study we assessed the effects of family history and family environment on alcohol misuse. From ongoing studies we recruited parents who had a child aged 18-30, 20 with a DSM-III-R alcohol dependence diagnosis, 20 without. The child then completed a multidimensional assessment. The young-adult participants included 20 men and 20 women (mean age = 24.8). Differences by family history were restricted to substance abuse behaviors. While a high level of alcohol problems occurred in both groups, those with an alcohol-dependent parent were more likely to be heavy drinkers and showed more symptoms of alcohol dependence. Overall psychological adjustment did not differ between the groups, however. Alcohol misuse measures did correlate moderately with symptoms of poor emotional health. The most important correlates of alcohol misuse measures in this study were exposure to parental alcoholism, abusive punishment, and psychological symptoms, with some separation of effects in the two subgroups. Psychological symptoms had a stronger relationship with misuse in subjects with social-drinking parents, while abuse was more associated in the group with an alcohol-dependent parent. These results confirm the importance of environmental interactions with familial risk. A biological vulnerability from an alcohol-dependent parent was not sufficient or necessary for the participants in this study to develop alcohol dependence as a young adult, although there was an increased risk. There appear to be strong protective effects of positive family relationships on the potential negative effects of a family history of alcoholism.

Group Therapy for Children of Substance Abusers

Twenty-five latency aged children of alcohol and cocaine dependent parents participated in a weekly open-ended outpatient therapeutic group for a year. The children discussed issues in family life relatin to their parents' addictions. The p a l s were to assist the chi1 f ren In overcoming feelings of isola- tlon, shame or guilt related to their parents' addictions, to pro- vide the children with an opportunity to experiment with a wide range of social roles and to educate the children about the dis- ease concept of addiction.