Study about the associated use of different types of drugs by high school students

• Published in: Revista medico-chirurgicala a Societatii de Medici si Naturalisti din Iasi Vol. 115; no. 3; p. 919
• Main Authors: Petrariu, F D, Mezei, Alexandra, Huţuleac, Alexandra, Dobrin, P R, Knieling, A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English; Romanian
• Published: Romania 01.07.2011
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adolescent Behavior; Adult; Alcohol Drinking - epidemiology; Alcohol Drinking - prevention & control; Attitude to Health; Beer; Data Interpretation, Statistical; Female; Health Education; Health Surveys; Humans; Male; Prevalence; Risk-Taking; Romania - epidemiology; Schools; Smoking - epidemiology; Smoking Prevention; Students - statistics & numerical data; Substance-Related Disorders - epidemiology; Substance-Related Disorders - prevention & control; Surveys and Questionnaires; Wine
• ISSN: 0048-7848

Socially acceptable drugs and illegal substances consumed by high school students affect their nervous system, which is under development and anticipate an extensive drug use later. In our study we have assessed the associate drug consumption at a group of high school teenagers by applying a questionnaire with 23 items. Tobacco use is the lowest in ninth grade students and it is significantly better represented in higher grade students. Regardless of the grade, there are no significant differences in the proportion of boys and girls who smoke, even the health risks posed by smoking are known to over 80% of respondents. Among the reasons that could cause the student smoking cessation predominates, at the smallest students, parents' threat (significantly stronger than at those of senior grades), unlike the senior students, which give a higher value to a possible alteration of their own health status. The temptation for beer consumption appears before the age of 11 years and it is mentioned about a quarter of all respondents. Drinking a glass of wine for the first time is placed around the age of 14 years for boys and 15 years for girls. Marijuana is the drug exclusively consumed in the ninth grade and holds supremacy and other classes. Barbiturates and amphetamines are known about two thirds of the surveyed students. Risks involved by the association of alcohol consumption, tobacco and drugs are represented differently in this group of adolescents, and evolve differently as the students grow, mature and evolve, in a positive manner for their existence or not. during the high school years teenagers are tempted to diversify their drug consumption and to associate them, even they know very well how serious are the health consequences of this attitude.