Chapter 7: Health related behaviours and substance abuse

Question 1

What kind of factors predict engagement in risk behaviour

Answer 1

Adolescents with low self, deviant behaviour and problematic family relationship are more likely to engage in risky behaviour. Problem behaviours do not occur in isolation.

Question 2

What is addiction?

Answer 2

is a condition whereby someone is repeatedly consuming a natural or synthetic substance and where that person is physically or psychologically dependent on that substance

Question 3

What 3 things classify addiction?

Answer 3

1) Repeated consumption
2) Physical dependence (characterized by tolerance and withdrawal) tolerance is getting used to a substance where you require more of it to get the same effects and withdrawal is the effects of not having that substance
3) Psychological dependence: this often comes before physical dependence (you think you need it first)

Question 4

What leads to dependence?

Answer 4

Reinforcement (positive- euphoria or negative- less anxious) Avoiding withdrawal, Substance related cues, expectancies, and individual differences (personality- lower self control and Genetics)

Question 5

TED talk on addiction: what do we know about addiction?

Answer 5

Almost everything we know about addiction is wrong.Thought experiment: We think because there are chemical hooks in substances after 20 days of taking a substance we would be addicted, but when your grandma had a hip replacement she didn’t become a junkie. Bruce alexander Experiment in the 70’s: Zero percent overdose when in “rat park” with happy lives and social connectedness and 100%~ overdose when they are isolated. Vietnam war, they just stopped using drugs when they got back. Maybe we shouldn’t even call it addiction maybe we should call it bonding, if you don’t have human connection you will bond with something else because that’s our nature (porn, gambling, alcohol). If you have bonds and connections you want to be present for, you do not seek addictions. If you don’t want to be present for your lack of bonds and connectedness than you seek an escape. We shame addicts and by doing this we put barriers between addicts and reconnecting, so their addictions continue.

Question 6

Who smokes?

Answer 6

20% of men and 15% of women in Canada smoke, the Lowest rate in Canadian history

Question 7

When does smoking in teens continue/increase?

Answer 7

At least one parent who smokes. Perception that parents are unconcerned or encourage smoking. Having siblings or friends who smoke. Receptiveness to tobacco advertisements. Peer pressure to smoke. Positive attitudes about smoking. Low harm assessment for smoking. Believing they could quit smoking if they wanted to

Question 8

On average how many cigarettes does a regular smoker smoke per day?

Answer 8

On average, 13.9 cigarettes per day

Question 9

What are the addictive effects of nicotine?

Answer 9

more than just the chemical pull, because people crave it after the nicotine has left their system.

Question 10

What are the health impacts of smoking?

Answer 10

• Greatest cause of preventable disease
• Cancer
• Cardiovascular disease (increases blood pressure, increased heart rate, constricts oxygen, makes your heart work harder)
• Respiratory diseases
• Other health problems:
• -Damage/injury from fires
• -Lower birth weight in offspring
• -Retarded fetal development
• -Second hand smoke

Question 11

Drinking is the ______ leading cause of preventable death

Answer 11

Third, after tobacco and improper diet/exercise

Question 12

What are the Canadian low risk alcohol guidelines for Men and Women?

Answer 12

Women: No more than 10 drinks/week, No more than 2 drinks/day, No more than 3 drinks in a single occasion
Men: No more than 15 drinks/week, No more than 3 drinks/day
No more than 4 drinks in a single occasion

Question 13

What influences who drinks and how much they drink?

Answer 13

Age, gender, SES
Sociocultural differences (Ireland, drinking is integrated. More likely to engage in daily drinking-not binge drinking. Places where its restricted more, binge drinking)
Problem drinking: more seen in higher economic statuses

Question 14

What is binge drinking?

Answer 14

Binge drinking is considered: 5 or more drinks in one sitting

Question 15

What is the health impact of drinking?

Answer 15

-Major sleep disorders
-Immune system alterations –> infections
Cognitive impairments (Aggression-homicides, assault
Risky behaviour-unprotected sex)
-Road fatalities
-Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD)( Group of disorders involving congenital damage to the CNS as a result of prenatal exposure to alcohol. Alcohol is the only elicit substance that is a teratogen)

Question 16

Prevention tactics

Answer 16

Social engineering

(Create barrier to buying, Monitor alcohol use,Restrict advertising) Education programs and Family involvement

Question 17

What are some common barriers to change and treatment?

Answer 17

Little immediate incentive, Bad habits are enjoyable, Health habits independent, Health habits unstable

Question 18

Succesful change: transtheoretical model

Answer 18

Suggests if you want to have the most benefit of getting people to abstain from smoking you would want them to be in the preparation stage

Question 19

What are the ways a person can reduce their own substance use

Answer 19

-Motivation matters
-Quitting on your own
-Treatment approaches
(Cognitive-behavioural
Chemical, Self help groups, Electronic/reminder tools, Harm reduction, Dealing with relapse)

Question 20

Cognitive behavioural approaches to treatment

Answer 20

Challenge thoughts Self monitoring
Operant conditioning
(e.g., Reward yourself for reducing or stopping behaviour)

Question 21

What factors affect relapse?

Answer 21

Genetics, withdrawal, stress, motivation conditional associations (e.g., party=alcohol)

Question 22

What is the abstinence violation effect?

Answer 22

Feel loss of control when violating rules. Minor relapse increases likelihood of more serious relapse

Question 23

What can be done to prevent relapse?

Answer 23

Restructure environment, reduce cues, healthy lifestyles

Question 24

Reducing smoking

Answer 24

Nicotine replacement therapy: Nicotine gum, Nicotine patches, E cigarettes. Multimodal intervention

Question 25

Skills training

Answer 25

Modelling- Pair new people with experienced 
Stimulus control (Remove temptations)
Relaxation (Deal with anxiety that might motivate problem)

Question 26

What is harm reduction?

Answer 26

Approach that focuses on the risks and consequences of the substance abuse problem rather than the use itself. Aim to keep people safe, minimize death, disease, and injury from high risk behaviour. Implemented at community level