Journal article
Frequent alcohol, nicotine or cannabis use is common in young persons presenting for mental healthcare: A cross-sectional study
BMJ Open, Vol.3(2), e002229
2013
Abstract
Objectives: To determine the prevalence of recent alcohol, nicotine or cannabis use in young persons presenting for mental healthcare. Design: A cross-sectional study of young people seeking mental healthcare completed self-report questionnaires regarding their use of alcohol, nicotine or cannabis. Setting: Data were collected from two sites as part of the national headspace services programme. Participants: 2122 young people aged 12-30 years provided information as part of a patient register; a subset of N=522 participants also provided more detailed information about their patterns of alcohol use. Outcome measures: Prevalence levels of recent alcohol, nicotine or cannabis use within relevant age bands (12-17, 18-19 and 20-30) or primary diagnostic categories. Results: The rates for use at least weekly of alcohol for the three age bands were 12%, 39% and 45%, and for cannabis 7%, 14% and 18%, respectively. The rates of daily nicotine use for the three age bands were 23%, 36% and 41%. The pattern of alcohol use was characterised by few abstainers as well as many risky drinkers. Age of onset across all three substances was approximately 15 years. Individuals who used any of the three substances more frequently were likely to be older, male or have psychotic or bipolar disorders. Conclusions: Frequent use of alcohol, nicotine or cannabis in young people seeking mental healthcare is common. Given the restricted legal access, the patterns of use in those aged 12-17 years are particularly notable. Reductions in substance use needs to be prioritised within services for at-risk young people.
Details
- Title
- Frequent alcohol, nicotine or cannabis use is common in young persons presenting for mental healthcare: A cross-sectional study
- Authors
- Daniel F Hermens (Author) - University of SydneyE M Scott (Author) - University of SydneyD White (Author) - University of SydneyM Lynch (Author) - University of SydneyJim Lagopoulos (Author) - University of SydneyB G Whitwell (Author) - University of SydneyS L Naismith (Author) - University of SydneyI B Hickie (Author) - University of Sydney
- Publication details
- BMJ Open, Vol.3(2), e002229
- Publisher
- B M J Group
- Date published
- 2013
- DOI
- 10.1136/bmjopen-2012-002229
- ISSN
- 2044-6055
- Copyright note
- Copyright © 2013 The Authors. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial License, which permits use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non commercial and is otherwise in compliance with the license. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/ and http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/legalcode.
- Organisation Unit
- University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland; Thompson Institute
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 99450184102621
- Output Type
- Journal article
Metrics
309 File views/ downloads
1329 Record Views
InCites Highlights
These are selected metrics from InCites Benchmarking & Analytics tool, related to this output
- Web Of Science research areas
- Psychiatry
UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
This output has contributed to the advancement of the following goals:
Source: InCites