A review of the incidence of nonprescription psychoactive substance use/misuse in Nigeria.

The past 15 years of published literature on the use/misuse of non-prescription psychoactive substances in Nigeria was reviewed. It was found that alcohol, tobacco products, cannabis, and stimulants are more frequently used than other substances. More males than females, more single than married persons, and more urban than rural residents use the substances. As a result of insufficient information, it could not be established who uses the substances more among different age, religious, social class, educational, and occupational categories. The incidence of substance misuse could not be established precisely because most of the authors did not clearly distinguish substance use from substance misuse. However, a low incidence of chemical dependency was established. Improved research methodology was suggested as a way of obtaining better results in the future.