Find up-to-date statistics on lifetime drinking, past-year drinking, past-month drinking, binge drinking, heavy alcohol use, and high-intensity drinking. Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page. There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase, a SQL command or malformed data. American Addiction Centers (AAC) is committed to delivering original, truthful, accurate, unbiased, and medically current information. If you identify as Latinx and are in recovery and would like to be part of training healthcare professionals in providing competent care, consider checking out a training to become a peer recovery coach.

Results from this study show that prevalence and patterns of alcohol use vary among Hispanics/Latinos of diverse heritage, as well as by sex. Given the growing numbers of Mexican background individuals in the US, more research is needed to further examine factors that may contribute to at-risk alcohol use among this group. Further, more research is needed to examine acculturation levels and potential mediators (e.g., acculturative drug rash and eruption stress) and at-risk drinking for Hispanic/Latina women. Overall, these findings underlie the importance of tailoring research and intervention programs to examine socio-economic and sex-specific factors contributing to alcohol use among Hispanics/Latinos. 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.

CETPA, a Georgia-based nonprofit that provides behavioral health services to the Latinx community, created a media campaign in Spanish produced in partnership with local Spanish TV stations that educated the local community on opioid use disorder. Bellevue Hospital in New York City, an addiction treatment clinic, provides holistic care by connecting clients to community organizations that assist with overall stability. Research from 2021 supports the idea that family-oriented treatment may help improve how does increased alcohol tolerance affect a person treatment outcomes, especially for young people with substance use. “We know that lots of people live in rural and suburban communities across the country, where public transportation infrastructure is basically nonexistent. That’s not even including methadone clinics, of which many people do not even have a methadone clinic in their county,” Vakharia says. Though research and awareness about mental health and substance use in the Latinx community is increasing, more still needs to be done.

All analyses also account for cluster sampling and the use of stratified sample selection [28]. Institutional Review Boards at all institutions (i.e., University of North Carolina, University of Miami, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Northwestern University, and San Diego State University) reviewed and approved the research. Thus, the data indicates that there are only slight differences in the percentages of individuals of Hispanic origin and non-Hispanic origin who need treatment for substance use disorders, get treatment for substance use disorders, and do not get treatment for substance use disorders.

Discover the impact alcohol has on children living with a parent or caregiver with alcohol use disorder. Find out how many people have alcohol use disorder in the United States across age groups and demographics. Explore how many people ages 18 to 25 engage in alcohol misuse in the United States and the impact it has. Learn how many people ages 12 to 20 engage in underage alcohol misuse in the United States and the impact it has. Even as the medical community and society as a whole work to reimagine what treatment for substance use disorder looks like for the Latinx community, know that help is available and healing is possible.

The overall treatment program for an alcohol use disorder as specified by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) would not vary substantially. According to a joint effort produced by SAMHSA and the Centers for Substance Abuse Treatment, it should include some specific considerations. Limitations for the current study should be taken into account when interpreting the results. However, it has been shown to be the best approach to find hidden populations of immigrants particularly undocumented immigrants. Finally, as with any cohort study, there is a possibility for selection bias from attrition. However, the RLIS has an excellent retention rate and selection bias due to loss to follow up is not likely to effect the sample.

What to Know About Substance Use and the Latinx Community

Below are three examples of interventions healthcare professionals may consider implementing to reduce barriers to care and improve treatment outcomes for the Latinx community facing SUD. Since social work is a predominantly white profession, Latinx people seeking treatment barbiturates for substance use are more than likely to encounter a white social worker who may not understand their unique needs. Some levels of care for treating substance use disorder and addictions involve inpatient programs that can last for 14, 28, or even 90 days.

1. Almost 30% were former drinkers (33%women, 27%men), and 52% were current drinkers (41%women, 63%men).
2. That’s not even including methadone clinics, of which many people do not even have a methadone clinic in their county,” Vakharia says.
3. These subgroup differences in alcohol use among Latinos, in addition to the limited existing research on Latinos immigrating to the US from a variety of Latin American regions including Cuba, and South and Central American, underscores the need for such research.
4. Thus, inclusion of these data is essential to better understand Hispanic/Latino population’s risk factors for at-risk alcohol consumption.

Another common trope of many treatment programs is “you can’t help people if you’re not helping yourself,” an idea that isn’t quite compatible with someone who, for example, may be supporting their family financially. The common suggestion to reduce time with loved ones who use drugs may not be compatible with Latinx people who prioritize tight family and community bonds. Many Western approaches to treating substance use emphasize an individual approach to treatment. Common messaging includes the notion that reducing time with other people who use will reduce the likelihood of use. The 2020 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) found that 12.7% of Hispanic or Latinx people ages 12 and older, or 6.2 million people, had a substance use disorder (SUD).

Tailor substance use-related public health prevention messages

Many view culturally competent care as simply providing interpreters or merely hiring bilingual staff. “If you are the breadwinner in your family, [you may think to yourself] ‘I will sacrifice my addiction treatment to pay the bills at home,’” Vakharia says. “Familismo” is a term used in Latinx culture that underlines the importance of family, a concept that treatment interventions may benefit from adopting. Here are some ways Vakharia suggests treatment can be overhauled to more adequately respond to the needs of the Latinx community on a systemic level, with societal and political support. According to a 2019 report of the Joint Economic Committee of the United States Congress, Hispanic workers earn 74% of what the typical white worker earns.

Self-reported past-month use of alcohol in Hispanic adolescents (15.8%) was generally consistent with the national average of past-month alcohol use for individuals between the ages of 12 and 17 (16%). Social workers play a pivotal role in recovery as they are often the primary healthcare professional who serves people with SUDs. Research from 2013 found that 71% to 87% of social workers reported working with people facing the condition.

A recent Kaiser Family Foundation analysis found that 28.9 million people were uninsured in the United States in 2019 and that Hispanic people were disproportionately impacted. In fact, Hispanic individuals were found to be over 2.5 times more likely to be uninsured than their white counterparts — or 19.1% compared with 7.1%. The United States Census Bureau estimates that 18.5% of the U.S. population is Hispanic or Latinx — more than 61 million people. Plus, the 2020 NSDUH reports that 18.4% of people with Hispanic or Latinx backgrounds were living with a mental health condition (other than SUD) in 2020. Discover how many people with alcohol use disorder in the United States receive treatment across age groups and demographics. Characteristics of Latino Immigrants with or without a family history of alcohol use at baseline.

Train and hire more Latinx social workers

Plus, Hispanic households are 1.7 times as likely to live in poverty than white households. Since it can be stressful when a person or group is treated differently than other groups of people, individuals belonging to marginalized groups may respond to discrimination with potentially harmful coping mechanisms such as substance use. Untreated mental health conditions are often cited as one possible root of substance use.

What contributes to prevalence of substance use in the Latinx community?

When looking at those over the age of 18, the prevalence was even higher, with 13.5%. To transform treatment outcomes for the Latinx community, approaching care with a sociocultural lens may help. If you or someone you love is facing an SUD, consider reaching out to a trusted healthcare professional for an evaluation and to explore your treatment options.

Cultural practices include items such as language use, cultural customs, and social affiliations. In terms of identity, ethnic identification is the extent to which an individual endorses their ethnic group. With regard to US immigration, there is also Americanism or the extent to which an individual is attached to the US. Though each domain can have an influence of substance use, the retention of Hispanic cultural practices is considered protective against substance use including alcohol use (Schwartz et al., 2011). However, the influence of these cultural factors on alcohol use among Latino immigrants with a family history of alcohol use is largely unknown. These study results provide the framework for more in-depth exploration regarding the influences that a family history of alcohol use, alcohol outcome expectancies, and acculturation have on the alcohol use among Latino immigrants from Cuba, South and Central America.