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A significant minority of MSM are using prescription medications without a doctor's consent. Men who do so are risking negative consequences of such use, including the potential for addiction, potentially dangerous interactions between prescription and recreational drugs, and greater risk for contracting HIV.

In recent years, the non-medical use of prescription drugs (without a doctor's prescription) has increased dramatically. Less attention has been paid to the intentional misuse of over-the-counter (OTC) medications. Misuse of OTC medications has negative health consequences similar to those of illicit drugs, including psychosis, tachycardia, seizures and agitation. When mixed with alcohol or other drugs, these medications can also be dangerous: OTC-related emergency room visits increased 70% from 2004 to 2008. This study examined the intentional misuse of OTC medications, the non-medical use of prescription drugs, the use of alcohol and illicit drugs, and psychological factors in two samples of young adults (ages 18-25) from different areas of the United States (Total N = 1,197). Overall, 18.6% of the Colorado sample and 13.0% of the Virginia sample reported lifetime misuse of an OTC medication. Participants who reported misusing OTC medications were also significantly more likely to report using marijuana, ecstasy, cocaine, and non-medical use of prescription analgesics, stimulants, anxiolytics, and sedatives. Participants who reported misusing OTC medications were more than twice as likely to report hazardous alcohol use, relative to individuals who denied misusing OTC medications. Individuals who had misused OTC medications scored significantly higher in sensation seeking and hopelessness and reported more symptoms of depression, anxiety, and somatic distress, relative to those who denied OTC misuse. Results suggest that a considerable minority of young adults are jeopardizing their health with the misuse of OTC medications as part of a pattern of polysubstance use.

Considerable public health literature focuses on relationships between problematic human characteristics (e.g., psychopathology) and unhealthy behaviors. A recent movement termed positive psychology emphasizes the advantages of assessing relationships between human strengths (e.g., altruism) and beneficial health behaviors. The present study assessed social responsibility, an orientation to help or protect others even when there is nothing to be gained as an individual, and its relationship to HIV-relevant behaviors. In our sample of 350 men who have sex with men (MSM), social responsibility was negatively correlated with substance use and HIV risk behaviors. Men who had been tested for HIV and knew their HIV status-a behavior that helps men protect their partners but does not protect themselves from the virus-also scored higher in social responsibility. Interventions designed to reduce HIV risk behavior in MSM may benefit from efforts to promote human strengths.

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