Background

Military veterans are a high-risk group for health risk behaviors, including alcohol and cannabis use. However, research on veteran vs. non-veteran rates of alcohol/cannabis use are inconsistent across studies. Further, no research has investigated veteran vs. non-veteran rates of alcohol and cannabis co-use, and few studies have tested whether demographic variables, particularly race/ethnicity, moderate group differences. Therefore, the current study tested whether 1) veteran vs. non-veterans differed in rates of alcohol use, cannabis use, and alcohol and cannabis co-use, and 2) whether demographic covariates (age, sex, race/ethnicity) moderated associations.

Methods

Data on adults (N = 706,897; 53.4% female) were derived from the 2002–2019 National Study on Drug Use and Health. Participant demographics, alcohol use frequency, drinking quantity, and cannabis use frequency were self-reported.

Results

Non-veterans reported higher drinking quantity, cannabis frequency, and co-use. However, being a veteran was a risk factor for heavier drinking for women, ethnic/racial minoritized participants, and adults under the age of 50. Additionally, veteran status was a risk factor for cannabis use frequency in racial/ethnic minoritized participants and women. Similarly, being a veteran was a risk factor for alcohol and cannabis co-use for racial/ethnic minoritized participants, and the buffering effect of being a Veteran on co-use was reduced for older participants and women.

Conclusions

Results suggest that, at the population level, non-veterans may be heavier alcohol/cannabis users. However, moderating analyses suggested that being a veteran is a risk factor for women, racial/ethnic minoritized individuals, and younger individuals. Findings are discussed in terms of public health implications.

中文翻译：

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退伍军人与非退伍军人的酒精使用率、大麻使用率以及酒精和大麻混合使用率随年龄、性别和种族的变化

背景

退伍军人是健康风险行为的高危人群，包括酗酒和吸食大麻。然而，关于退伍军人与非退伍军人酒精/大麻使用率的研究在各项研究中并不一致。此外，没有研究调查退伍军人与非退伍军人同时使用酒精和大麻的比率，也很少有研究测试人口变量（特别是种族/民族）是否会调节群体差异。因此，当前的研究测试了 1) 退伍军人与非退伍军人在饮酒、大麻使用以及酒精和大麻共同使用方面是否存在差异，以及 2) 人口统计协变量（年龄、性别、种族/民族）是否调节了关联。

方法

成人数据（N = 706,897；53.4% 为女性）来自 2002-2019 年国家药物使用与健康研究。参与者的人口统计数据、饮酒频率、饮酒量和大麻使用频率都是自我报告的。

结果

非退伍军人报告的饮酒量、大麻频率和共同使用率较高。然而，退伍军人身份是女性、少数族裔参与者和 50 岁以下成年人酗酒的一个风险因素。此外，退伍军人身份是少数族裔参与者和女性使用大麻频率的一个风险因素。同样，对于少数种族参与者来说，成为退伍军人是同时使用酒精和大麻的一个风险因素，而对于老年参与者和女性来说，成为退伍军人对共同使用酒精和大麻的缓冲作用降低了。

结论

结果表明，在人口水平上，非退伍军人可能是较重的酒精/大麻使用者。然而，调节分析表明，成为退伍军人对于女性、种族/民族少数群体和年轻人来说是一个风险因素。研究结果从公共卫生影响的角度进行了讨论。