A cross sectional study into assessing drug awareness among youth of district Kangra of Himachal Pradesh, India

Substance abuse by students in high schools, colleges and universities is a serious problem because drugs have strong appeal to young people who are beginning their struggle for individual (identity). Innate curiosity, thirst for new experiences, media, peer pressure and faulty motivation lead many of the youth population to substance abuse. Therefore, a cross sectional study was conducted to assess the level of drug awareness and gender differences among school and college students in district Kangra, H.P. The study population comprised of 250 school students (12–17 years) and 250 college students (18–25 years). Results revealed that most of the respondents i.e. 39 per cent from both schools and colleges (40.8% and 37.2%) respectively had moderate level of drug awareness followed by 31 per cent students who had inadequate knowledge. Nearly half of the total sample i.e. 44.6 per cent got information about ill effects of drug abuse by media/television and 22.8 per cent became aware about drugs at schools, colleges and home (by parents). However, 15.6 per cent of respondents are unaware and only 6.6 per cent have gain knowledge through their friends. Significant gender difference was found between school sample at .005 confidence level and at .001 confidence level for total sample. Also positively significant correlation was found between drug awareness and fathers and mothers education along with caste and it is negatively correlated with family income. It is concluded from the study that an early intervention and awareness on the adverse effects of psychoactive substance at an early age helps in avoidance of such illicit habits and addiction among students. Community programs focus on educating parents and caregivers about how to talk to their children about drugs by preventing drug use in the first place by promoting healthy lifestyles and positive social norms or by providing support to people who are struggling with addiction or recovery.