Citation

Naghizadeh S, Faramarzi E, Akbari H, Jafari N, Sarbakhsh P, Mohammadpoorasl A. Health Promot. Perspect. 2023; 13(2): 99-104.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2023, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences)

DOI

10.34172/hpp.2023.12

PMID

37600541

PMCID

PMC10439452

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Substance abuse has significant health impacts on families and society as a whole. We aimed to provide detailed prevalence estimates of substance abuse among the Azar Cohort Study respondents in Tabriz, Iran.

METHODS: Data on 15006 participants of Azar Cohort Study were analyzed. The variables included tobacco smoking, alcohol use, drug abuse, and socio-demographic characteristics. The prevalence of substance abuse (with a 95% confidence interval) was calculated using the direct standardization method.

RESULTS: Overall, 9.3% and 6.2% of the participants were regular and heavy cigarette smokers, respectively. Also, 1.9% and 2.1% of participants reported a history of using illicit drugs and alcohol, respectively. Substance abuse was more prevalent among males than females. Substance abuse varied significantly with age and socioeconomic variables.

CONCLUSION: We identified specific demographic and socioeconomic groups with a higher prevalence of all studied behaviors. Such high-risk groups should be targeted when designing substance abuse prevention programs.

Language: en

Keywords

Alcohol drinking; Cohort studies; Health risk behaviors; Tobacco smoking