The contributions of everyday and major experiences of racial discrimination to current alcohol use and regular smoking in Black adults: Considering variation by demographic characteristics and family history

Background: Racial discrimination has consistently been linked to elevated alcohol use and smoking in Black adults, but the independent contributions of everyday and major experiences of discrimination have rarely been investigated. The present study aimed to identify variation in magnitude of the links between each type of racial discrimination with current frequency of alcohol use and regular smoking by demographic characteristics and family history of problem drinking/regular smoking in Black adults in the U.S. Methods: Data were drawn from 4462 adults (29.40% Afro Caribbean, 70.60% African American; 63.20% female) in a nationally representative sample of Black Americans. Logistic regression analyses were conducted to predict current frequency of alcohol use and regular smoking using the Everyday Discrimination Scale (EDS) and Major Experiences of Discrimination Scale (MEDS), testing for interactions with demographic characteristics and family history. Results: In the alcohol model, an EDS by education level interaction was observed: OR = 1.04 (CI:1.02-1.07) for < high school; OR = 0.95 (CI:0.92-0.98) for >= high school. MEDS was independently associated with alcohol use (OR = 1.11, CI:1.04-1.18). In the smoking model, EDS was associated with elevated risk (OR = 1.03, CI:1.01-1.04) and a MEDS by age cohort interaction was observed: OR = 1.24 (CL1.11-1.38) for

Automated summary

The study found that both everyday discrimination and major discrimination are associated with alcohol use and smoking behavior in Black adults. Education level influences the relationship between everyday discrimination and alcohol use, while major discrimination is independently correlated with alcohol use. For smoking behavior, everyday discrimination is associated with increased risk, and there is an interaction between major discrimination and age cohort.