close
close

A study indicates the “critical period” to intervene in the fight against drug consumption

A study indicates the “critical period” to intervene in the fight against drug consumption

Late adolescence has been described as a “critical period” to intervene in increasing drug use after research among 20-year-olds found that recent cocaine use (in the past year) increased six-fold since the same group was surveyed in 17 years.

A study, conducted by a team of researchers in Ireland and Great Britain, conducted an important analysis of Growing up in Irelanda nationally representative survey of young people in Ireland.

5,965 people participated, who were followed up to the age of 17 and 4,679 people up to the age of 20.

The study, published in the Adolescent Health Magazinefound that 3.7% of 17-year-olds reported cocaine use, but that this figure jumped to 23% at age 20. He said this suggests that late adolescence is a “critical period to intervene to intercept” riskier behaviors.

The study found that the level of cocaine use at age 20 was “substantially higher” than reported internationally, although it was similar to a 2021 Irish university survey.

The research said cocaine use is associated with early substance use, with a “strong risk gradient” between the age of first alcohol and cocaine use.

He said that having friends who use drugs is strongly related to cocaine use and that alcohol use disorder or drug use in the family is associated with an increased risk of cocaine use. The study said initiatives that delay alcohol and cannabis use can also reduce cocaine use.

“Extension of school-based prevention programs with established protective effects to tertiary and vocational educational settings as well as workplaces could be considered,” he said.

The research team said that with global cocaine supply set to reach a record level in 2023, preventative efforts “must focus on reducing cocaine availability.”

The study was carried out by health and psychology academics from Trinity College Dublin and University College Cork, adolescent addiction professionals from the HSE and researchers from the Health Research Board. They were helped by statisticians from the University of Warwick and the University of Leicester in Great Britain.