Epidemiology of Substance use Among the University Students in South India: an Exploratory Study

Aim: Substance use among students has been recognized as an important public health concern in recent years. Particularly, its increasing use among university students and associated outcomes have gained much attention and highlighted the importance of the topic for policymakers. Given this, the main aim of this study was to explore the trend and pattern of substance abuse among students in three public universities in South India. Subjects and Methods: This was an exploratory study conducted at three main universities in Hyderabad, Telangana. For this study, 300 respondents were selected through snowball and purposive sampling techniques. The interview schedule and questionnaire were used as the main tools to collect the data from respondents. Results: The major findings revealed a high prevalence rate of substance abuse among male students (78.76 %), arts-related backgrounds (38 %), and students living in university hostels (64.67 %). Further, high proportion of students (67 %) started using substances for the first time on university campuses. Alcohol (39 %), cigarettes or tobacco (32 %), and opioids (18 %) were found common substances. Peer group influence (31 %), relief from psychological pressure (17 %), and curiosity (12 %) were identified as the main associated factors of substance abuse. In addition, the main adverse effects reported were behavioral problems (21 %), poor academic performance (19 %), and health issues (17 %). Conclusion: This study concluded that substance use among university students is widespread, irrespective of sociodemographic and academic backgrounds. Therefore, universities should set up various programs to create awareness and prevent the use of substances in high- learning institutions.