Effective interventions were identified; however, the effectiveness of these interventions may be limited to specific factors. Future research requires many foci in order to identify risk and protective factors at both personal and environmental levels. There is also an increased understanding of the potentially protective effects of neighborhoods such as social cohesion, social support, and collective efficacy (Hong et al., 2014; Shell et al., 2013; Frank et al., 2007; Vega et al., 2011). But further knowledge is needed to fully understand how these neighborhood factors interact with personal characteristics across racial/ethnic groups to increase or decrease risk for drinking and problems. Personal ecologies (i.e., interactions with different actors in different drinking related settings, such as at home, bars, or parties, can also bring risk or protection; Gruenewald 2007). Personal behaviors, alcohol availability, and the defining characteristics of these settings can influence drinking and an increased understanding of these factors is needed.

Ethnic Drinking Cultures

For example, the NSDUH reported on binge drinking (i.e., 5+ drinks on the same occasion at the same time or within a couple of hours of each other on ≥ 1 day in the previous 30 days). The NESARC studies, on the other hand, reported on HED (i.e., 5+/men and 4+/women) drinks once or more per month in the previous 12 months). Assessment of past-30 day intake is problematic because if large quantities of alcohol are consumed per occasion, but in an infrequent manner, the amount of drinking may be underestimated.

Links to NCBI Databases

Returning to why Cuban Americans appear less prone to abuse or become dependent on alcohol, in comparison to Puerto Ricans’ or Mexican Americans’ higher likelihood, the answer may be more cultural in origin. Hispanic and Latino youth is projected to make up 30% of the young population in the decades to come, and teens can be more influenced to use and misuse substances, depending on life’s weird soup of circumstances. Recovery Guide LLC does not endorse any treatment provider, and we do not guarantee the quality of care, outcomes, or results from any treatment program listed or advertised on our site. All information is provided for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice.

Sunshine Behavioral Health Facilities

According to a study published in the journal Alcohol and Alcoholism, Puerto Rican men and women are the heaviest drinkers among Hispanic Americans. The study found that Puerto Ricans are almost three times more likely to develop alcohol use disorders than non-Hispanic white Americans due to cultural differences. One such difference is that drinking starts at an earlier age in Puerto Rico, with 20.5% of men and 9% of women initiating alcohol use at or before the age of 14. This is significantly higher than the rates for other Hispanic groups, such as Mexican Americans (12% of men and 10.5% of women), Cuban Americans (11% of men and 3-5% of women), and Dominican South Central (D/SC) Americans (8% of men and 3-5% of women). Sunshine Behavioral Health strives to help people who are facing substance abuse, addiction, mental health disorders, or a combination of these conditions.

• AddictionResource.net, and its parent company Recovery Guide LLC, is not a treatment provider and does not offer medical advice or clinical services.
• Several areas of inquiry are important to all racial/ethnic groups, such as those focusing on psychological risk factors and socioeconomic status.
• At higher levels of severity, Blacks and Hispanics with an AUD were also less likely to use certain types of services (mental health, self-help).
• However, moderate treatment differences favoring MET were found in the subsample of participants whose primary substance use problem was alcohol (Carroll et al., 2009).
• The reasons for the higher alcohol consumption among Puerto Ricans may be rooted in cultural norms and accessibility.
• Second, Brooks et al. (2013) found that while Hispanic individuals were less likely to report trading sex relative to their non-Hispanic Black or non-Hispanic White counterparts, they were more likely to report having unprotected sex while trading sex.

Access to financial resources and legal protections may be important contributors to this. Additionally, intergenerational or historical trauma is another form of stress that disproportionately affects the health and well-being of people of color. With greater research into health disparities, many health researchers now argue that these disparities are driven primarily by inequalities in wealth and power across society. These disparities may have a greater impact on a person’s risk for illness, disease, and access to quality care.

Neighborhood Effects: Residential Segregation Disadvantage, and Ethnic Density

In terms of access to treatment issues, one study found that compared to Whites, Hispanics reported more travel time to the site (despite reporting the same distance), less access to the internet, and were less likely to have insurance (Campbell et al., 2017). Few studies made efforts in their recruitment/sampling procedures to increase Hispanic representation in their sample. Only one study reported specific efforts to maximize racial/ethnic representation such as including treatment providers that served Blacks and Hispanics (Robbins et al., 2011). Similarly, Sanchez et al. (2015) reported that geographic location of the treatment programs was an important consideration in enhancing representation in their trial.

According to a National Survey on Drug Use and Health, in 2018 an estimated 1.1 million Hispanic and Latino youth used drugs illegally in the previous year. That puts them at greater risk to contract HIV, hepatitis B and C, and sexually transmitted diseases. Several studies indicate Hispanic and Latino teens are more likely to use both illicit and licit drugs.

Hispanics significantly underutilize substance abuse treatment and are at greater risk for poor treatment outcomes and dropout. Two decades of research from the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network (CTN) offers an opportunity to increase our understanding in how to address the disparities experienced by Hispanics in substance abuse treatment. The path ahead for research with racial/ethnic minority groups presents both challenges and opportunities.

Hispanic is linked more to people of Spanish-speaking origins or from former colonies of Spain. It can get infinitely more complex from there, but Mexican Americans make up the majority of Hispanic-Latinos in the U.S., followed by Central and South Americans, Puerto Ricans, and Cubans. In 2019, 18.3% — or 59.9 million people living in the United States — were Hispanic or Latino. This section collects any data citations, data availability statements, or supplementary materials included in this article.

Being a Black American in a low-income bracket or living with a disability in a rural area with limited access to medical resources are examples of disparities. Rates of past month and past year drug use among Hispanics are comparable to those of other ethnic groups. 7.1% of Hispanic Americans have a substance use disorder, compared to a rate of 7.4% among the total hispanic alcoholism and rehab rates population. It should not be used to replace the suggestions of your personal physician or other health care professionals. Showing respect for parental figures as well as other family members and taking a less cold and clinical approach to treatment may yield better outcomes.

Next, the first author and RA independently coded the same 11 interviews and met regularly to compare coded transcripts. When new codes emerged, the coding scheme was updated, and transcripts were re-read and re-coded. This process ensured that all coders shared the same understanding of the coding scheme, thereby safeguarding the consistency and validity of the results.

• While the Hispanic population in the United States is diverse, with varying cultural backgrounds and countries of origin, there are some commonalities and trends in alcohol consumption that have been observed.
• Recovery Guide LLC does not endorse any treatment provider, and we do not guarantee the quality of care, outcomes, or results from any treatment program listed or advertised on our site.
• Despite efforts to improve inclusion of minority populations, Hispanics remain underrepresented in clinical trials.
• One limitation of this study is the cross-sectional design which does not allow for the exploration of the directionality of the associations among SES, acculturation, gender, and alcohol use.
• The very concept of race has been questioned too, in light of recent genomic discoveries (Foster & Sharp, 2004; Yudell et al., 2015).

With this model, considerations of discrimination and poverty are necessary to understand alcohol use and its consequences. A related framework, the minority stress model, emphasizes that discrimination and prejudices are stressors that may explain minority drinking behaviors (Keyes et al., 2012, Keyes et al., 2011). Recognizing how racial health disparities can show up in addiction treatment spaces is only the first step toward creating better access for people of color seeking addiction recovery. These disparities highlight that while substance use treatment access has improved, significant barriers remain in mental health care, particularly for communities of color. Housing instability, unemployment, and low socioeconomic status can be major barriers to completing addiction treatment programs. The clinic provides health services, substance abuse services and welfare-to-work support services, primarily for low-income people of all ages who would otherwise be unable to obtain primary health care and family life education for adults age 18 and older.

In the Carroll et al. (2009) study that was comprised of Hispanic adults (all Spanish-speaking), alcohol was the primary substance used by 60% of the participants. Among the pooled analyses, alcohol, marijuana, and “other” substances were the most commonly endorsed primary substance of abuse among Hispanics in CTN trials (Brooks et al., 2013, Campbell et al., 2017). Additionally, higher alcohol use was found among Hispanic adults with stimulant use disorders in residential treatment compared to their non-Hispanic White counterparts (Sanchez et al., 2015).

Hispanic Americans face disparities in treatment

Treatment for alcohol and other SUDs is a cornerstone of a comprehensive policy to address alcohol and drug problems worldwide (Babor et al., 2010). However, treatment utilization is not only determined by need, as defined by the prevalence of AUD in a particular racial/ethnic group and the severity of disease, but also by a number of other factors which may or may not be connected with such need. For instance, substance use treatment is frequently triggered by pressures from family, friends, employers, and the legal system (Weisner and Schmidt, 2001; Weisner et al., 2002). Therefore, those who have jobs, family, or friends are more likely to be led to or coerced into treatment than those who do not.

The relationship between at-risk alcohol use and socio-economic status (SES) is unclear, whereby risk levels may be similar between low and high SES individuals. However, several global studies have shown a clear association between negative alcohol-related health outcomes, such as alcohol-related mortality and socioeconomic deprivation19–21. Thus, while at-risk levels may not vary by SES, when considering the negative effects, the relationship with SES is strengthened making low-SES individual much more at risk. One study has shown that low-SES Latinos, specifically of Mexican-origin, in the United States may be at disproportionate risk of harmful drinking patterns pervasive in their country of origin 22. Given that Hispanics/Latinos are more likely to experience SES disparities in the United States 23, more research is needed. Given the levels of drinking and in some cases, racially/ethnically-specific factors of risk identified in the sections above, there is clearly a need for appropriate and adequate access to alcohol treatment programs for racial/ethnic minority groups.