A recent study published in JAMA Network Open has highlighted the effectiveness of a multimodal digital program in helping young adults reduce their alcohol intake and improve their sleep health. Developed by researchers at Yale University, the program, called Call it a Night, incorporates health education, self-monitoring, and feedback and coaching.
The two-week program was designed to leverage sleep health as a way to engage young adults who report at-risk drinking. It includes web-based sleep health advice, a diary for self-monitoring habits on one’s phone, and feedback from wearable devices that estimate alcohol consumption and sleep. The feedback is presented on a biometric dashboard to provide insights on the connection between sleep and drinking behaviors. Health coaches then help young adults interpret their health data, set behavioral goals, and offer personalized behavior-change strategies.
In a randomized control trial, the full Call it a Night program was compared against two control conditions in 120 young adults who reported at-risk drinking. The results showed that all participants significantly reduced their drinking over the three months following the program. However, only the group that received the full intervention showed significant improvements in sleep-related impairment. They were also more likely to achieve a reduction in their drinking risk level compared to those who received advice alone.
Dr. Lisa Fucito, the lead author of the study, emphasized the importance of sleep health as a key focus for engaging young adults. She noted that all digital tools in the program were helpful for reducing drinking, but the coaching and personalized feedback from the wearable devices played a crucial role in promoting meaningful behavior change. The use of the SCRAM CAM device to track alcohol consumption provided valuable insights to the participants without focusing on disease treatment.
Young adults in the United States, particularly those between the ages of 18 and 25, have high rates of heavy drinking and alcohol use disorders but often do not seek help. Digital health tools and personalized approaches that integrate physical and mental well-being have been found to be effective in engaging this population.
The researchers highlighted the need for scalable and sustainable strategies to enhance alcohol prevention and intervention programs for young adults. Future research will focus on refining the intervention and testing its effectiveness in more diverse populations under real-world clinical conditions.
For more information on the study, you can refer to the original article published in JAMA Network Open. The findings underscore the value of digital interventions in addressing alcohol use risk and improving sleep health in young adults.
