Religiousness and substance use in children of opiate addicts

Purpose: To investigate among children of opiate addicts a potential protec tive effect of religiousness (broadly defined in the literature to include religious beliefs, practice, and tradition) against onset of substance use. Methods: Subjects were 161 opiate-addicted biological parents recruited fr om methadone maintenance programs in the New York metropolitan area, their 279 children, and 63 non-opiate-addicted parents with whom the child had da ily contact. Childhood onset of substance use was assessed using the Schedu le for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Aged Children (K-SA DS); parental DSM-III-R diagnosis of opiate addiction was assessed using th e SADS-Lifetime Version (SADS-L). Results: Religiousness in children of opi ate addicts was associated with a substantially decreased likelihood of ons et of substance use. Parent-child concordance of religiousness showed addit ional protective qualities with respect to religious denomination in opiate -addicted parent and with respect to the personal importance of religion an d frequent attendance of religious services in non-opiate-addicted parents. Conclusion: Religiousness protects against substance use among children of opiate addicts. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.