title: Alcohol dependence and reproductive timing in African and European ancestry women: findings in a midwestern twin cohort.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  We examined associations between reproductive onset and history of alcohol dependence (AD) in 475 African ancestry (AA) and 2,865 European or other ancestry (EA) female twins.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants were drawn from a U.S. midwestern birth cohort study of like-sex female twin pairs born between 1975 and 1985, ages 21-32 as of last completed assessment. Cox proportional hazards regression models were estimated predicting age at first childbirth from history of AD, separately by race/ethnicity, without and with adjustment for sociodemographic characteristics, body mass index, history of other substance involvement, psychopathology, and family and childhood risks.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among EA twins, AD predicted early childbearing through age 17 and delayed childbearing from age 25 onward; in adjusted models, AD was associated with overall delayed childbearing. Among AA twins, reproductive timing and AD were not significantly related in either unadjusted or adjusted models.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Findings for twins of European ancestry are consistent with well-documented links between early alcohol mis/use and teenage parenting as well as delays in childbearing associated with drinking-related reproductive and relationship difficulties. Extension of analyses to other racial/ethnic groups of sufficient sample size remains important.
authors.affiliation: Department of Counseling and Educational Psychology, Indiana University School of Education, Bloomington, Indiana, Midwest Alcoholism Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri.
authors.forename: Mary
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Waldron
authors.affiliation: Midwest Alcoholism Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri.
authors.forename: Kathleen K
authors.initials: KK
authors.lastname: Bucholz
authors.affiliation: Midwest Alcoholism Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri.
authors.forename: Pamela A F
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Madden
authors.affiliation: Midwest Alcoholism Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, George Warren Brown School of Social Work, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri.
authors.forename: Alexis E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Duncan
authors.affiliation: Midwest Alcoholism Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut.
authors.forename: Carolyn E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Sartor
authors.affiliation: Midwest Alcoholism Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri.
authors.forename: Andrew C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Heath
mesh_terms: D000437:Alcoholism / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000191:economics / Q000208:ethnology*; D044383:Black People / Q000208:ethnology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015146:Midwestern United States / Q000208:ethnology; D011247:Pregnancy; D043762:Reproductive Behavior / Q000208:ethnology*; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013997:Time Factors; D044465:White People / Q000208:ethnology*; D055815:Young Adult; D001741:Black or African American