Reducing the risk factors and enhancing the protective factors associated with initiating substance use.
Prevention
What Are Kids Taking?
The results are in. The 2014 – 15 Canadian Student Tobacco, Alcohol, and Drugs Survey shows that, on the one hand, smoking rates are generally down, while on the other, experimentation with synthetic and prescription drugs is increasing...
The Will to Stop: Explaining Smoking Habits
A new study carried out by researchers at the University of Stirling has discovered a link between self-control and lifelong smoking habits. It claims that children identified as having low levels of self-control by age eleven are more...
The TV Made Me Do It: Children and Alcohol Consumption
New research published in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs supports evidence that alcohol adverts influence underage drinking. The authors suggest that the more exposure children receive to adverts for specific brands, the...
Music Videos Might Encourage Binge Drinking
A recent review carried out by researchers at the University of Nottingham's UK Centre for Tobacco and Alcohol Studies suggests popular YouTube music videos that include aural and/or visual references to alcohol often glamourise consumption...
Higher Numbers Getting High
Marijuana use amongst adults in the United States is increasing. A study of over half-a-million people carried out between 2002 – 2014 and subsequently published in The Lancet suggests that this is because fewer perceive the drug to be...
Is Mass-Media Effective for Drug Prevention?
Mass-media can be a great means for sharing knowledge and information. A study recently published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) aimed to determine whether such channels are successful in reducing the intention to use, and the...
Low Self-Esteem Linked to Excessive Drinking Among Students
Student life and excessive drinking often go hand-in-hand. New research has found that it is students with low self-esteem that are more likely to indulge in unhealthy drinking behaviours than those with higher confidence levels. The...
Vaping Ads Make Smoking Tobacco Seem Healthier
Up to 50% of children who try tobacco cigarettes for the first time are likely to become regular smokers within three years. At the same time, experimentation with e-cigarettes is increasing. It is now more common for 11- to 15-year-olds in...
International Standards for the Treatment of Drug Use Disorders
Drug use disorders are a serious global health problem. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) estimates that 246 million people, or one in twenty 15- to 64-year-olds, used an illegal drug in 2013. Of those who use, one in ten...
