Prevalence of substance use and their correlates among adolescent boys in Bihar, India

ABSTRACT

Background

Unhealthy behaviors including smoking, drinking, and drug use often begin during adolescence and are closely related to morbidity and mortality. This study examines the prevalence and factors associated with substance use among adolescent boys in Bihar, India.

Methods

Data from the Understanding the Lives of Adolescents and Young Adults (UDAYA), conducted in 2015–16 in two Indian states, was used for analysis (n = 2004 adolescent boys aged 14–19 years). A multivariate logistic regression model was applied to estimate the effect of various correlates on substance use.

Results

Prevalence of tobacco consumption (19%) is high, followed by consumption of alcohol (8%) and drug use (1.2%) among adolescent boys in Bihar. One-fifth have ever used at least one substance. Age, education, current schooling status, wealth quintile, household head’s educational attainment, and mother’s education level are found to be important factors influencing substance use.

Conclusion

It is essential to adopt more pointed programs which can effectively reduce substance use among adolescents in this and similar states. Programs related to prevention of substances should be expanded effectively through health education programs, media messages at the grassroots level, especially in the socio-economically backward states in India.

KEYWORDS:

• Adolescent boys
• substance use
• Bihar
• India

Availability of data and materials

The data set used in the study is available in the public domain at the Population Council, India website.

Authors’ contributions

SK contributed to planning the paper, carrying out statistical analysis, and drafting the manuscript. KAK contributed to the design of the paper, reviewed the manuscript. Both authors have read and approved the final manuscript.

Compliance with ethical standards

Ethical considerations This article is based on the secondary analysis of the data, which is available to all on-demand for research purposes. Hence no compliance with ethical standards as required.

Consent for publication Not applicable

Competing interest The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The authors did not receive any funds for this study.