Association between family and social support and alcohol consumption among LGBTQ + people in Kenya and Rwanda: a cross-sectional study.

PURPOSE: Negative attitudes, beliefs, and views against LGBTQ + individuals continue to persist across Sub-Saharan Africa, which exposes LGBTQ + individuals to multiple stressors, leading them to engage in risky behaviors such as excessive alcohol use. This study aimed to examine whether family acceptance and social support are associated with less alcohol use.

METHODS

This study used a cross-sectional design in Rwanda and Kenya involving 2,023 participants who identified as LGBTQ+. Multivariable logistic regression was employed, and we report the odds ratios along with their 95% confidence intervals.

RESULTS

In the adjusted model including gender identity, those who had a happy relationship with family and friends had a lower relative risk of drinking every day aRRR = 0.5 (95% CI: (0.4, 0.8)). In the adjusted model including sexual orientation, those who had a happy relationship with family and friends had 0.5 lower relative risk of alcohol consumption compared to those who did not have a happy relationship with family and friends (95% CI: (0.3, 0.7)). In the adjusted models, being tolerated/rejected was not a significant predictor of drinks per drinking episode and drinking within the last four weeks for models including gender identity and sexual orientation. In the adjusted models, having a happy relationship with family was not a significant predictor of drinks per drinking episode for the models including gender identity and sexual orientation.

CONCLUSION

This study reveals the importance of family-accepting behaviors to mitigate against the effects of stressors that LGBTQ + individuals potentially face.