Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Aug;25(4):819-827.
doi: 10.1007/s00737-022-01244-6. Epub 2022 Jun 23.

Licit and illicit drug use across trimesters in pregnant women endorsing past-year substance use: Results from National Survey on Drug Use and Health (2009-2019)

MacKenzie R Peltier  1   2 , Walter Roberts  3 , Terril L Verplaetse  3 , Catherine Burke  3 , Yasmin Zakiniaeiz  3 , Kelly Moore  3   4 , Sherry A McKee  3
Affiliations

Licit and illicit drug use across trimesters in pregnant women endorsing past-year substance use: Results from National Survey on Drug Use and Health (2009-2019)

MacKenzie R Peltier et al. Arch Womens Ment Health. 2022 Aug.

Abstract

Purpose: Given the health consequences, perinatal substance use is a significant public health concern, especially as substance use rates increase among women; ongoing data regarding the rates of substance use across trimesters of pregnancy is needed.

Methods: The present study utilized cross-sectional population-based data from the National Survey of Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) between 2009 and 2019. We aimed to explore both licit and illicit substance use assessed within each trimester among women endorsing past-year substance use. The NSDUH sample included 8,530 pregnant women.

Results: Perinatal substance use was less prevalent among women in later trimesters; however, past-month substance use was observed for all substances across trimesters. The prevalence of past-month licit substance use among pregnant women ranged from 5.77 to 22.50% and past-month illicit substance use ranged from 4.67 to 14.81%. In the second trimester, lower odds of past-month substance use were observed across tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana (odds ratios [ORs] ranging from 0.29 to 0.47), when compared to the first trimester. A similar lower rate of past-month substance use was observed in the third trimester compared to the first trimester, across tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana use, as well as cocaine, prescription pain medication, and tranquilizer use (ORs ranging from 0.02 to 0.42). The likelihood of polysubstance use was lower among women in the second and third trimesters compared to the first trimester (ORs ranging from 0.09 to 0.46).

Conclusion: Findings indicate that a minority of women continue to use substances across all trimesters. This is especially true among women using licit substances and marijuana. These results highlight the need for improved interventions and improved access to treatment for these women.

Keywords: Illicit substances; Licit substances; Pregnancy; Substance use; Trimester.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Competing Interests: All authors declare that they have no competing interests to declare that are relevant to the content of this article.

References

    1. Adams ZM, Ginapp CM, Price CR, Qin Y, Madden LM, Yonkers K, & Meyer JP (2021). “A good mother”: Impact of motherhood identity on women’s substance use and engagement in treatment across the lifespan. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 130, 108474. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Addis A, Moretti ME, Ahmed Syed F, Einarson TR, & Koren G (2001). Fetal effects of cocaine: an updated meta-analysis. Reprod. Toxicol, 15(4), 341–369. doi: 10.1016/S0890-6238(01)00136-8 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Ali MM, Nye E and West K (2022). Substance use disorder treatment, perceived need for treatment, and barriers to treatment among parenting women with substance use disorder in us rural counties. The Journal of Rural Health, 38: 70–76. 10.1111/jrh.12488 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Alshaarawy O, & Anthony JC (2019). Cannabis use among women of reproductive age in the United States: 2002–2017. Addict. Behav, 99, 106082. doi: 10.1016/j.addbeh.2019.106082 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Azagba S, Manzione L, Shan L, & King J (2020). Trends in smoking during pregnancy by socioeconomic characteristics in the United States, 2010–2017. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 20(1), 52. doi: 10.1186/s12884-020-2748-y - DOI - PMC - PubMed

Publication types