Latino immigrant men have been found to consume less alcohol upon moving to the United States, compared to their pre-immigration drinking patterns, according to a study by researchers at the Robert Stempel College of Public Health and Social Work. According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), Latino populations have disproportionate rates of alcohol-related consequences compared to other ethnic or racial groups. These include legal and health consequences, such as some of the highest rates of alcohol-related cirrhosis. Researchers were surprised to find that upon moving to the United States, there were decreases in alcohol use in men, with no significant change in women.

Funded by the NIAAA, this is the first community-based investigation to examine the influence of pre-immigration social and cultural factors on the adaptation process and alcohol use and misuse of young adult recent Latino immigrants in Miami-Dade County. Researchers from FIU’s Center for Research on U.S. Latino HIV/AIDS and Drug Abuse (CRUSADA) followed more than 500 documented and undocumented immigrants representing 17 countries during their first decade of living in the U.S. Participants were asked to classify their alcohol consumption – based on frequency and quantity – before they moved to the U.S. and throughout the 10-year study. The finding could help in the development of intervention strategies to continue and maintain the decreasing rates of post-immigration alcohol use among Latino immigrant men and address the growing problem of alcohol use among Latina immigrants.