Suboptimal parenting practices as a risk factor for adolescent alcohol consumption in Ukraine

BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to investigate the association between alcohol use by adolescents and relationships with parents and parenting practices in Ukraine. For this analysis, the nested case-control study design was used with pooled data from 1999, 2003, and 2007 surveys of repeated cross-sectional study “European School Survey Project on Alcohol and other Drugs”.METHODS: A nationally representative sample of classes in Ukrainian secondary schools was used. The target population consisted of all 15-16-year-old students in Ukraine. Complete data were available for 10,494 participants. Main exposures were perceptions of the relationships with one’s mother and father, rule-setting, control, and support provided by parents. Outcome measures were: regular use of alcohol, drinking to the point of intoxication, and age when students start consuming alcohol. Associations between the determinants and outcome measures were analyzed using multivariate binary logistic regression analysis.RESULTS: Adolescents who were not so satisfied with the relationships with their mothers were nearly twice as likely (OR=1.7; 95%CI=1.2-2.5) to have used alcohol 10 or more times during the last 30 days. Adolescents who were not at all satisfied with their relationships with father were at risk of drinking to the point of intoxication at least once during last year (OR=1.4, 95%CI=1.2-1.8).Adolescents whose parents never know whom he/she spends evenings with were nearly twice as likely (OR=1.8, 95%CI =1.3-2.4) to have used alcohol 10 or more times during the last 30 days. However, the relationships between rule-setting by parents, perceived support and alcohol use were not consistent.CONCLUSION(s): This study supports the hypothesis that the dissatisfaction with the relationships with one’s mother, unlike the dissatisfaction with the relations with one’s father, may be a risk factor for regular alcohol use among adolescents. Besides, our results denote the negative association of parental support and control with adolescent alcohol use.