Background

Loneliness is a widespread problem, with demonstrated negative health effects. However, prospective data on the relationship between loneliness and problematic substance use are lacking, and few studies have examined specific commonplace substances, such as alcohol and cannabis. This study used prospective data from a community sample of US adults with problematic alcohol or cannabis use to examine whether loneliness was a predictor of subsequent increased substance use.

Methods

Participants (N = 210) were recruited between 05/2016–06/2019 from a New York City medical center. At baseline, 3-month, and 6-month follow-ups, participants completed identical computerized questionnaires. We used generalized estimating equations to assess the average effect of past 2-week loneliness on subsequent number of days of alcohol or cannabis use, controlling for baseline days of use, demographic characteristics, and past 2-week DSM-5 depression.

Results

Compared with individuals who were never lonely, participants with moderate or severe loneliness had a significantly higher frequency of alcohol or cannabis use at the subsequent assessment ($\beta$ = 0.25 95% CI: 0.08–0.42).

Conclusion

Individuals experiencing loneliness at least a few times in the past 2 weeks reported more days of subsequent alcohol or cannabis use compared with individuals who were not lonely. This is cause for concern, as national surveys of US adults indicate increasing rates of loneliness, depression and substance use during the COVID-19 pandemic. These results suggest the need for health care providers to screen for feelings of loneliness and potentially harmful coping behaviors such as substance use, and to offer healthier alternative coping strategies.

中文翻译：

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孤独感对酒精和大麻使用频率的前瞻性影响

背景

孤独是一个普遍存在的问题，对健康有负面影响。然而，缺乏关于孤独感与有问题的物质使用之间关系的前瞻性数据，并且很少有研究检查特定的常见物质，如酒精和大麻。这项研究使用来自酒精或大麻使用问题的美国成年人社区样本的前瞻性数据来检查孤独感是否是随后增加物质使用的预测因素。

方法

参与者 (N = 210) 于 05/2016–06/2019 期间从纽约市医疗中心招募。在基线、3 个月和 6 个月的随访中，参与者完成了相同的计算机化问卷。我们使用广义估计方程来评估过去 2 周的孤独感对随后使用酒精或大麻的天数的平均影响，控制使用基线天数、人口特征和过去 2 周的 DSM-5 抑郁症。

结果

与从不孤独的人相比，有中度或重度孤独感的参与者在随后的评估中饮酒或吸食大麻的频率明显更高（$\beta$ = 0.25 95% 置信区间：0.08–0.42）。

结论

与不感到孤独的人相比，在过去 2 周内至少经历过几次孤独感的人报告称，随后的酒精或大麻使用天数更多。这令人担忧，因为对美国成年人的全国调查表明，在 COVID-19 大流行期间，孤独、抑郁和药物滥用的比例不断上升。这些结果表明，医疗保健提供者需要筛查孤独感和潜在有害的应对行为（例如物质使用），并提供更健康的替代应对策略。