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Review
. 2025 Jan 2;51(1):14-30.
doi: 10.1080/00952990.2024.2419540. Epub 2025 Jan 27.

A narrative review on alcohol use in women: insight into the telescoping hypothesis from a biopsychosocial perspective

Dylan E Kirsch  1 , Malia A Belnap  2 , Annabel Kady  1 , Lara A Ray  1   3
Affiliations
Review

A narrative review on alcohol use in women: insight into the telescoping hypothesis from a biopsychosocial perspective

Dylan E Kirsch et al. Am J Drug Alcohol Abuse. .

Abstract

Background: There has been a dramatic rise in alcohol consumption and alcohol use disorder (AUD) among women. Recently, the field has made substantial progress toward better understanding sex and gender differences in AUD. This research has suggested accelerated progression to AUD and associated health consequences in women, a phenomenon referred to as "telescoping."Objective: To examine evidence for the telescoping hypothesis from a biopsychosocial perspective.Methods: This narrative review examined and integrated research on biological, psychological, and socio-environmental factors that may contribute to the development and progression of AUD in women.Results: Biopsychosocial research has revealed sex- and gender-specific risk factors and pathways to AUD onset and progression. Biological sex differences render females more vulnerable to alcohol-related toxicity across various biological systems, including the brain. Notably, sex and gender differences are consistently observed in the neural circuitry underlying emotional and stress regulation, and are hypothesized to increase risk for an internalizing pathway to AUD in women. Psychological research indicates women experience greater negative emotionality and are more likely to use alcohol as a means to alleviate negative emotions compared with men. Socio-environmental factors, such as familial and peer isolation, appear to interact with biological and psychological processes in a way that increases risk for negative emotionality and associated alcohol use in women.Conclusion: There appears to be a complex interplay of biopsychosocial factors that increase risk for AUD onset and progression in women through an internalizing pathway. Developing targeted interventions for women with AUD that specifically target internalizing processes is critical.

Keywords: Alcohol use disorder; alcohol; gender; negative affect; sex; stress; treatment; women.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest.

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