Binge drinking and family history of alcoholism are associated with an altered developmental trajectory of impulsive choice across adolescence

Abstract

Aims To test whether binge drinking, the density of familial alcoholism (FHD), and their interaction are associated with an altered developmental trajectory of impulsive choice across adolescence, and whether more lifetime drinks is associated with a greater change in impulsive choice across age. Design Alcohol-naïve adolescents, with varying degrees of FHD, were recruited as part of an ongoing longitudinal study on adolescent development, and were grouped based on whether they remained non-drinkers (n = 83) or initiated binge drinking (n = 33) during follow-up. During all visits, adolescents completed a monetary delay discounting task to measure impulsive choice. The effects of binge-drinking status, FHD, and their interaction on impulsive choice across adolescence were tested. Setting Developmental Brain Imaging Lab, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, Oregon, USA. Participants 116 healthy male and female adolescents (ages 10–19) completed 2–4 visits between July 2008 and May 2016. Measurements Discounting rates were obtained based on adolescents’ preference for immediate or delayed rewards. FHD was based on parent-reported prevalence of alcohol use disorder in the participant’s first and second degree relatives. Binge-drinking status was determined based on the number of recent binge-drinking episodes. Findings There was a significant interaction effect of binge-drinking status and FHD on impulsive choice across age (b = 1.090, p < 0.05, β = 0.298). In adolescents who remained alcohol-naïve, greater FHD was associated with a steeper decrease in discounting rates across adolescence (b = −0.633, p < 0.05, β = −0.173); however, this effect was not present in binge-drinkers. Furthermore, total lifetime drinks predicted escalated impulsive choice (b = 0.002, p < 0.05, β = 0.295) in binge-drinking adolescents. Conclusions A greater degree of familial alcoholism is associated with a steeper decline in impulsive choice across adolescence, but only in those who remain alcohol-naïve. Meanwhile, more lifetime drinks during adolescence is associated with increases in impulsive choice across age.

Resilience to Risk for Psychopathology: The Role of White Matter Microstructural Development in Adolescence

“…In conclusion, our findings extend previous cross-sectional studies demonstrating reduced FA in adolescents with FHP, and suggest that many associations between FHP and white matter microstructure dissipate by late-adolescence/early adulthood. These findings suggest that some of the protective factors previously associated with FHP (18,19) may be associated by underling structural improvements during this sensitive period of brain development. Further, we provide evidence that some of the microstructural features previously shown to be associated with late-onset psychopathology in adults may also be associated with FHP-related abnormalities in adolescents.…”

“…Based on previous findings, we hypothesized widespread reductions in FA with increased FHPD, particularly in the superior corona radiata, cingulum, and superior longitudinal fasciculus, regions of convergence between multiple studies of familial psychopathology (15)(16)(17). Further, as previous studies suggest that a greater degree of FHPD is associated with behavioral improvements in those that remain resilient (19), we hypothesized that the association between FHPD and FA would dissipate with age, as adolescents continue to remain free of personal psychopathology.…”

“…18), and those that suggest that a higher degree of FHP is associated with greater executive control in adolescents who remain resilient (e.g. 19).…”

Adolescent Substance Use and the Brain: Behavioral, Cognitive and Neuroimaging Correlates

“…The latter study suggests that the effects of alcohol on learning and memory may be mediated by dose. Dose-dependent neurotoxicity of alcohol use is also observed in other neurocognitive domains that were previously discussed, including attention and impulsive choice (Squeglia et al, 2009b;Jones et al, 2017). Therefore, more research is needed to develop strategies to reduce alcohol intake severity that may help temper the neurocognitive consequences related to adolescent alcohol use.…”

“…Similarly, adolescent alcohol drinking altered the developmental trajectory of impulsivity, whereby improvement in impulsivity decelerated following the onset of binge drinking (Ruan et al, 2019). Interestingly, a family history of alcoholism was shown to be protective concerning impulsivity by Jones et al (2017). Adolescents with a family history of alcoholism who remained alcohol-naïve exhibited a greater decrease in impulsive choice across an eight-year follow-up period compared to those who went on to binge drink.…”