Advertisement

Hispanic drug use rises with acculturation

NEW YORK, Aug. 13 (UPI) -- Acculturated Hispanics in the United States are nearly 13 times as likely to report using illegal drugs as non-acculturated Hispanics, a U.S. study found.

Acculturation involves the adoption of new cultural information and social skills by an immigrant group replacing traditional cultural beliefs, practices and social patterns, explains study author Scott Akins of Oregon State University in Corvallis, Ore.

Advertisement

Atkins surveyed 6,713 adults in Washington state – 1,690 adults who identified themselves as Hispanic and found that 6.4 percent of whites reported using illicit drugs in the previous month, compared to 7.2 percent of acculturated Hispanics and less than 1 percent of non-acculturated, Spanish-speaking Hispanics.

The survey also found acculturated Hispanics were almost twice as likely as non-acculturated Hispanics to report current binge drinking and more than three times as likely to report drinking continuously for days in a row without sobering up, also known as bender drinking.

Akins presented the findings at the American Sociological Association’s annual meeting in New York City.

Latest Headlines