Irish secondary school students reported drinking more alcohol than their European counterparts the last time they drank, according to a European school survey.
rish secondary school students reported drinking more alcohol than their European counterparts the last time they drank
However, overall, Irish students reported they smoked and drank less during the previous 30-day period when compared with the average for all countries.
Across Europe the report, which is based on a survey last year of 36 European countries, shows the use of illicit drugs among 15-16-year-old school students appears to have stabilised.
It reveals a reduction in ‘heavy episodic drinking’ (five drinks or more per occasion) and highlights country differences and the need for vigilance where cannabis, inhalant and tobacco use has been seen to rise.
In Ireland, the non-prescribed use of tranquillisers or sedatives is also below average.
However, Irish students drank more than the average European students the last time they took alcohol and reported drinking a volume of 6.7 centilitres of pure alcohol, compared with the ESPAD average of 5.1 centilitres.
Further, lifetime use of cannabis, of illicit drugs other than cannabis and of inhalants was also reported to the same extent as the average.
In conclusion, even though two or three of the key variables differ from the average, Irish students’ overall substance-use habits do not seem to differ all that much from the ESPAD average.
The Irish survey for the European report was carried out last year by Dr Mark Morgan of St Patrick’s College in Drumcondra in Dublin.
- Report from RTE.ie
- See more on this story at TheJournal.ie
