Abstract
Background: In the United States, an estimated 21 million children under the age of 18 have experienced parental substance use, a growing crisis and public health epidemic. Children who have experienced parental substance abuse are more likely to experience additional traumatic events that often lead to poor mental health and behavioral issues. Despite these concerns, little is understood about the relationship between this adverse childhood event and mental health and behavioral outcomes among children.
Methods: Data was used from the 2022 National Survey of Children’s Health (n=4,464), a population-based survey of US children. Descriptive statistics were used to compare children by exposure to parental substance use. Associations between parental substance use and the mental health, developmental, and behavioral outcomes among children were evaluated using multivariable logistic regression, controlling for key sociodemographic
and health characteristics.
Results: Almost 9% of children were exposed to parental substance use. I found a strong association between parental substance use, anxiety, depression, and behavioral issues in children. In logistic regression models, adjusted for sociodemographic characteristics, children who experienced parental substance use were more than twice as likely (odds ratio OR=2.23; 95% conference interval CI =2.06-2.41) to experience anxiety; and nearly three times as likely (OR=2.85; 95% CI: 2.58-3.14) to experience depression; and almost two and a half times as likely (OR=2.46; 95% CI: 2.25-2.68) to experience behavioral issues compared to children who have not experienced parental substance use.
Conclusions: These results highlight the important relationship between parental substance use and anxiety, depression, and behavioral issues in children. Findings from this study underscore the importance of developing targeted interventions for families struggling with this issue and training service providers in understanding how to support families experiencing substance use.