THURSDAY, Nov. 21, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- Think of it as collateral damage: Millions of Americans say they have been harmed by a loved one's drug or alcohol use.

One in 3 adults who responded to a new nationwide survey said they had suffered "secondhand harm" from another person's drinking. And more than 1 in 10 said they had been harmed by a loved one's drug use. 

That's close to 160 million victims -- 113 million hurt by loved one's drinking and 46 million by their drug use, according to the survey published recently in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs. 

"There are more harms than people think," said study co-author William Kerr, of the Alcohol Research Group at the Emeryville, Calif.-based Public Health Institute. "They affect families, relationships and communities."

He said it makes sense that risky drinking and drug use have far-reaching consequences, but researchers only began looking at the secondhand harms of alcohol in recent years. Less has been known about the damage done by a loved one's drug use.

The new study is based on a survey of 7,800 U.S. adults. They were questioned between September 2019 and April 2020, before the pandemic became a factor in Americans' substance use.

People were asked if they had been harmed in any of several ways due to someone else's substance use. 

In all, 34% of respondents said they had suffered secondhand harm from someone else's alcohol use. The harms ranged from marriage and family problems to financial fallout, assault and injury in a drunken-driving accident.

Meanwhile, 14% of respondents said they'd suffered similar consequences from a loved one's drug abuse. 

The two groups overlapped, too -- 30% of respondents reporting secondhand harm from alcohol also said they were affected by someone's drug use.

Kerr said in a journal news release that the differences probably owe to the fact that drinking and alcohol use disorders are more common than drug use and disorders. But, he added, researchers want to learn more and are launching a new survey with more questions about the harms related to individual drugs.

He said the findings shed a light on a major public health issue. For every person with a substance use disorder, many more may be harmed, Kerr said. That underscores the importance of both better access to treatment and efforts to reduce harm (such as preventing driving under the influence).

More information

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration has resources for people coping with a loved one's drug and/or alcohol abuse. 

SOURCE: Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, news release, Nov. 21, 2024