Bridging the gap: a study on substance use among the adolescents in a rural area of Jaipur.

OBJECTIVES

To find out the prevalence of substance use and associated factors among adolescents of the rural area of Jaipur, Rajasthan.

METHODS

This cross-sectional study was carried out in 461 adolescents of rural area Achrol of Jaipur using systematic random sampling technique. Sample size of 461 was calculated using 4PQ/L2 with a prevalence of substance use at 15.8 %. We utilized a pre-developed, pre-validated, semi-structured questionnaire based on the WHO steps questionnaire with specific adaptations was used. The data was analyzed using SPSS Software version 23, and the Chi-square test was employed for qualitative data analysis.

RESULTS

The findings revealed that the average (Mean) age of the study participants was 14.1 ± 2.1. Maximum of the study participants (53.3 %) were in the age group of 14-16 years. Males were more (69.6 %) as compared to females (30.3 %). The overall prevalence of substance use was 26.4 % among the study participants. About one fourth (22.2 %) of participants had consumed alcohol in the past. Only (2.1 %) of them were daily smokers. Majority (95.8 %) of the study participants had never consumed any type of Intravenous drug. Factors like family history of substance abuse, high body mass index, low physical activity were statistically significantly associated with different forms of substance use.

CONCLUSIONS

The study population exhibited a high prevalence of substance use and related risk factors. Important risk factors for different forms of substance use prevalent in the study population included male gender, obesity, family history of substance use, and low levels of physical activity.