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Correlates of High-Risk and Low-Risk Alcohol Use among College Students in Kerala, India.
J Psychoactive Drugs. 2018 Jan-Mar;50(1):54-61
Authors: Jaisoorya TS, Gowda GS, Nair BS, Menon PG, Rani A, Radhakrishnan KS, Revamma M, Jeevan CR, Kishore A, Thennarasu K, Benegal V
Abstract
This study describes the prevalence and correlates of alcohol use among college students in Ernakulam, Kerala State, India. A total of 5784 students from 58 colleges selected by stratified random sampling completed a questionnaire incorporating standardized instruments. The prevalence of lifetime alcohol use was 21.4% with a male predominance. Among users, low-risk, hazardous, and dependent use were 80.2%, 18.3% and 0.9% respectively. Initiation was mostly with friends (45.3%). Both low-risk and high-risk alcohol users (hazardous and dependent users), in comparison to abstainers, had higher odds of being older, non-Muslim, having a part-time job, using other substances, and exposure to sexual abuse. Students who reported low-risk use also had an urban background, more severe psychological distress and suicidal thoughts, while high-risk users had attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms. Students who reported high-risk use compared to low-risk users had higher odds of having a part-time job, tobacco use, and ADHD symptoms. Alcohol use among college students is common, with both low- and high-risk drinking associated with significant morbidity. This study highlights the need to promote public health policies to target and prevent all patterns of alcohol use among young people.
PMID: 28949827 [PubMed – indexed for MEDLINE]
via https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28949827?dopt=Abstract