The Addictive Behavior Survey shows that out of 10 young adults aged 18, nine have consumed alcohol, five have smoked tobacco, and two to three have used illicit substances, mostly cannabis, at least once in the past 12 months.
This is the conclusion of a nationwide survey conducted using an anonymous self-completion questionnaire among all 18-year-olds participating in the National Defense Day, which has been held annually since 2015 with a break in 2020 due to restrictions caused by the covid-19 pandemic.
A study sponsored by the Intervention Service for Addictive Behavior and Addictions (SICAD) shows that between two and three young people used illicit substances at least once, mainly cannabis, followed by stimulants such as amphetamines/methamphetamines and cocaine.
In turn, five out of 100 young people said they had taken tranquilizers/sedatives without a doctor’s prescription within the past year, according to the report “Addictive Behavior at 18: Substance Use,” published on Tuesday by SICAD.
“With the exception of alcohol and tobacco, this consumption typically occurs less than 10 times a year,” underlines the survey, which included 70,374 young people out of 90,068 drafted for National Defense Day/2021.
For alcohol, the scenario of “high prevalence” of heavy drinking at a time remains: “Six out of 10 young people report that they have been lightly drunk at least once in the previous 12 months, five have had a “binge” and three have become very ill. drunk.”
Approximately three out of 10 young people said that they had experienced at least one of the seven problems presented in the questionnaire related to the use of alcoholic beverages and/or illegal substances. Situations of emotional discomfort were chosen as the main problem.
In an analysis of 19 epidemiological indicators related to consumption patterns, the study found some important differences based on gender, educational level and working status.
“Young males with lower levels of education (thus students who have not completed several years) and student workers stand out because they have more contact with psychoactive substances, use more often and have more experience of the problems they attribute to psychoactive substances. consumption,” the document says.
A trend analysis split over two time periods (2015-2019 and 2019-2021) to identify clearly impromptu changes in the period affected by the pandemic shows a predominance of stable prevalence and frequency of consumption, with minor exceptions such as frequency of consumption new psychoactive substances, which declined during this period.
On the other hand, it shows a “substantial increase” in claims of problems related to the use of alcoholic beverages and illegal substances.
According to the study, these changes differ by socio-demographic subgroups: “Unemployed youth stand out due to the predominance of a decrease in the incidence, students – for their maintenance, and student workers – for the predominance of their increase in the period from 2019 to 2021.” .
In turn, young people with low qualifications also stand out on a par with student workers due to their increased experience of problems.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
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