Black Adults and Substance Abuse
In a country that prides itself on racial diversity, it is important to take inventory and assess whether problems with drugs and alcohol span racial divides or if particular groups need more prevention and education efforts than others.
The U.S. Census Bureau reports that about one-third of the population belongs to a racial or ethnic minority group, and that the percentage is expected to rise to 54 percent by 2050. Although substance abuse affects every race and ethnicity, it is important to understand the differences between groups so that each individual is getting the care they need.
A recent report addressed the needs of black Americans using data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). It utilized the information to assess substance use and treatment needs among black adults, identified as 12.2 percent of the population of the U.S.
The data, compiled from 2004 to 2008, shows that in the past month, 44.3 percent of black adults had used alcohol, 21.7 percent had participated in binge alcohol use, and 9.5 percent had used an illicit drug. The rates for alcohol use and binge alcohol use are below the national average, while use of illicit drugs was above the national average.
When the data is broken down between younger and older adults, the younger adults aged 18 to 25 showed rates of alcohol use to be considerably lower than that of the national average, and past-month illicit drug use was slightly lower than the national average (18.7 versus 19.7 percent).
Among older black adults, aged 65 or older, the rate of past-month alcohol use was considerably lower than the national average while binge drinking and illicit drug use was similar to the national average.
When analyzing the information by gender, both males and females were found to have a lower rate of past-month and binge alcohol use than the national average and a slightly higher rate of illicit drug use than the national average.
An estimated 7.7 percent (1.9 million) of black adults were identified as being in need of treatment for an alcohol use problem in the previous year, which is similar to the national average of 8.1 percent. However, 4.4 percent of black adults were in need of treatment for illicit drug use, while the national average is 2.9 percent.
The information produced by the NSDUH is very helpful in addressing the needs of specific racial/ethnic groups for drug and alcohol abuse treatment and prevention. The report on the substance use of black adults shows a distinct area, illicit drug use, that is higher than the national average and might require strategic education and prevention programs.
