Substance use among high school students in Erbil City, Iraq: prevalence and potential contributing factors

Abstract

Background: Substance use among adolescents, especially smoking and alcohol consumption, has become a public health concern in the Kurdistan Region, Iraq, in the past 10 years. Aims: This study aimed to determine the prevalence of substance use and certain associated factors among high school students in Erbil City, Kurdistan Region, Iraq. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted using a multistage cluster sampling technique to collect a sample of 3000 students. A modified version of the School Survey on Drug Use from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime was used for data collection. Binary logistic regression models were used to identify risk factors for substance use. Results: The lifetime prevalence rates of cigarettes smoking, waterpipe smoking and alcohol consumption were 27.6%, 23.6% and 3.7%, respectively. Male gender, age 17-19 years, smoker in the family, and easy accessibility of cigarettes were significantly associated with cigarette smoking. Factors significantly associated with waterpipe smoking were male gender, age 17-19 years, waterpipe smoker in the family, waterpipe smoker friend, and easy accessibility. Male gender, alcohol dependent in the family, alcohol-dependent friend, easy accessibility of alcohol, and low family income were significant predictors of alcohol consumption. Conclusions: The prevalence of cigarette smoking and waterpipe use was high in the studied sample. Possible explanations for this finding might be the use of flavoured tobacco associated with aromatic smell, and the misconception that waterpipe smoking is less toxic and addictive than cigarette smoking.

Substance Use among Undergraduate Students at Mizan-Tepi University in Ethiopia: Prevalence, Associated Factors, and Its Effect on Health and Academic Performance

“…Being male was 3 times increased odds of substance use than being women. This nding was in line with several studies conducted elsewhere (5,11,30,31,39,12,19,23,(25)(26)(27)(28)(29). This could be because males are more likely to experiment with things in their life.…”

“…Besides, those individuals are more likely to become hopeless and depressed that prone them to experiment with substance to relieve their problem. Since an individual who had a feeling of hopelessness or sadness and depression are more likely to use the substance (26,29,39).…”

Alcohol consumption among tertiary students in the Hohoe municipality, Ghana: analysis of prevalence, effects, and associated factors from a cross-sectional study

“…Studies conducted in Ghana also reported similar findings [ 10 , 11 ]. The social learning principle which emphasizes that individuals can learn bad behaviours from watching their peers [ 14 ] could explain the findings in the study. Also, as peers are important sources of social support and therefore, their pressure can be an enforcer for good and bad behaviour [ 14 ].…”

Substance use behavior and its lifestyle-related risk factors in Bangladeshi high school-going adolescents: An exploratory study

“…waterpipe smoking, alcohol consumption, and use of unprescribed tranquilizers, respectively [27]. The same study also identified that 34.3% of the adolescents reported using any of the substances sometimes during their lifetime [27].…”

“…waterpipe smoking, alcohol consumption, and use of unprescribed tranquilizers, respectively [27]. The same study also identified that 34.3% of the adolescents reported using any of the substances sometimes during their lifetime [27]. To this end, it can be noted that the diversity of substance use in a particular cohort (medical students, for instance) can vary across the cultures, used methodology, and other factors [28][29][30].…”