Excessive drinking is thought to cause several serious health issues amongst adolescents. A recent study has found that alcohol dependency in adolescence raises the possibilities of developing depression in young adults.

Alcohol use disorder makes people depending on alcohol, they usually find it difficult to stop drinking or limit the amount of intake. Additionally they experience reduced interest in social and work activities and show withdrawal symptoms. Even when the habit starts affecting health, life and work, alcohol-dependent individuals find it tough to stop drinking.

The most recent study by a team of researchers from UCL (University College London) and the University of Bristol suggests adolescents who show signs of alcohol dependence usually tend to develop depression by their mid-20s.

“Through the use of a big, longitudinal dataset, we’ve found evidence that problematic drinking patterns in late adolescence may increase the chance of developing depression years later,” co-lead creator Dr. Gemma Lewis said. “Problematic drinking patterns may very well be a warning sign of future mental health problems, so helping young people to avoid problematic alcohol use could have long-term advantages to their mental health.”

The study examined the association between signs of problematic drinking, or alcohol dependence on the age of 18, and depression six years later.

Researchers found that folks who were alcohol dependent from the age of 17 to 22 were more prone to have depression at age 24 than their peers who weren’t dependent. The study also suggests that heavy-drinking adolescents who had no signs of dependency didn’t show an increased risk of depression.

The participants were measured on an alcohol dependency scale, where a rise from zero to 1 rating represents a 28% increase within the probability of not having the ability to stop drinking. Those that scored zero alcohol dependence at age 18 showed an 11% probability of depression, while those with a rating of 1 had a 15% probability.

“While we found that alcohol consumption alone didn’t appear to extend the probability of depression, heavy drinking is usually a precursor to dependence and may have harmful physical health impacts in the long term as well. High frequency and quantity of alcohol consumption, due to this fact, remain essential as targets to forestall or reduce during adolescence,” co-lead creator Gemma Hammerton said.

A recent study has found that alcohol dependency in adolescence raises the possibilities of developing depression in young adults.
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Published by Medicaldaily.com