Minority boys who smoke are more likely to light up when they think they are being victimized by discrimination, according to a new study from Indiana University. The same does not hold true for minority girls.

Researchers studied 2,561 black and Latino teenagers, of which 12 percent were smokers.

"Boys and girls may experience discrimination differently due to where they spend their time, and that may account for the differences in whether discrimination was associated with increased smoking. The context of discrimination matters," according to the report, which was published in the American Journal of Public Health.

Labels: tobacco use, boys, discrimination

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A Texas community organization, Texans Standing Tall, has found that girls in grades 7 through 12 now drink more than boys do, thanks in large part to alcoholic energy drinks.

"Energy drinks are popular among youth, including those that contain alcohol... The only difference on the can labels is the absence of nutrition facts and the appearance of an alcohol percentage. Alcoholic beverages aren't governed by the FDA..."

As of January, Anheuser-Bush had removed all of its alcoholic energy drinks from circulation, in response to a lawsuit claiming the drinks were marketed toward young people. Source: Lufkin (TX) Daily News

Labels: girls, boys, binge drinking

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Male college students are more likely to commit property crimes and abuse substances than males of the same age not enrolled in universities, according to a new study from Bowling Green University.

For purposes of the study, "college student" was defined as a male enrolled in a four-year university program.

Peggy Giordano and Stephen Cernkovich, using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, examined information about 9,245 middle and high school students. The college-bound students had lower levels of criminal activity and substance abuse in grades 7 through 12 than the non-college-bound, but they did worse than the other group once they enrolled in universities.

Labels: boys, college_students, risky_behaviors

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