Prevalence of Substance Use Among Asian Sexual Minority Individuals in the United States, 2015-2020

ABSTRACT

Asian sexual minorities (SMs) are an under-researched population. SMs are at higher risk for substance use problems than heterosexuals, but little research exists specifically on Asians who are SM. This study compared the prevalence of substance use among Asian SMs and among adults by race/ethnicity and sexual identity in the US. Data were analyzed from participants in the 2015–2020 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, a nationally representative cross-sectional survey of non-institutionalized adults. Controlling for demographic characteristics, logistic regression models were used to estimate odds of substance use 1) among Asian adults by sexual identity (N = 11,079) and 2) all adults by race/ethnicity and sexual minority status (N = 223,971). Among Asians, compared to heterosexuals, identifying as gay/lesbian was associated with higher odds of past-month use of marijuana. Bisexual Asians were at higher odds of engaging in past-year prescription opioid misuse and having past-year alcohol use disorder (AUD). Compared to White heterosexuals, Asian SMs were at lower odds for past-month binge drinking and cocaine use, but not for past-month marijuana use and past-year AUD, marijuana use disorder, and prescription opioid misuse. More research is needed to understand these disparities and address sexual identity’s role in substance use among Asians.

KEYWORDS:

• Sexual minorities
• Asians
• substance use disorders
• gay/lesbian
• bisexual

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available in the public domain in the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) at https://www.datafiles.samhsa.gov/dataset/national-survey-drug-use-and-health-2020-nsduh-2020-ds0001.

Additional information

Funding

Research reported in this publication was supported by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Award Number [R01HL160324]. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.