Young adults who have recently battled depression are at increased risk of starting to smoke cigarettes or initiating alcohol and other drug use, according to a report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).

The NSDUH Report: Depression and the Initiation of Alcohol and Other Drug Use among Young Adults

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Highlights:

Major depressive episodes in lifetime or past year were assessed in SAMHSA's National Survey on Drug Use and Health among young adults aged 18 to 25.

A major depressive episode was defined using the DSM-IV diagnostic criteria which specifies a period of two weeks or longer during which there is either depressed mood or loss of interest or pleasure and at least four other symptoms that reflect a change in functioning (such as problems with sleeping, eating, energy, concentration, and self image).

Data from SAMHSA's National Surveys on Drug Use and Health were used to examine the following among young adults in the past year: major depressive episode, initiation of alcohol or illicit drug use, and the association between such new alcohol and/or illicit drug use and major depressive episode.

Combined data from SAMHSA's 2005 and 2006 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health found an annual average of 9.4% of young adults (about 3 million) had experienced at least one major depressive episode during the past year.

Rates of major depressive episode varied by gender, racial group, and Hispanic status.

About 1.5 million young adults (25.1% of the young adults who had not used alcohol previously) used alcohol for the first time in the past year.

About 870,000 young adults (6.1% of the young adults who had not used an illicit drug previously) used at least one illicit drug in the past year.

Among young adults who had not used alcohol previously, 33.7% of those with a major depressive episode started using alcohol compared with 24.8% of the young adults who had not experienced a major depressive episode in the past year.

Among young adults who had not used any illicit drug previously, those who experienced a major depressive episode in the past year were twice as likely to have initiated use of an illicit drug than young adults who had not experienced a major depressive episode in the past year (12.0% vs. 5.8%).