More than half of teenagers have tried alcohol and one in five have recently smoked electronic cigarettes, the European Regional Office for World Health Organization (WHO)in a report on health habits.
O alcohol is the most consumed substance among young people: 57% of 15-year-olds have already tried it and 37% have consumed it in the last month, while one in 10 admits to having been drunk at least twice in their lives, a percentage that goes from 5% at 13 years old to ” alarming” 15% at 15 years old.
“These findings highlight the how standardized and available alcohol isshowing the urgent need for better measures to protect children and young people from the harm caused by this consumption, says WHO-Europe, which covers 57 countries, including Russia and several former Soviet republics.
The study highlights that the Electronic cigarettes have overtaken conventional cigarettes in popularity: 32% of 15-year-olds have used them at some point and 20% have used them in the last 30 days, numbers that drop to 25% and 15%, respectively, for conventional cigarettes.
This trend is mainly observed from the age of 13: while 11% have ever smoked and 5% have smoked in the last month, in the case of electronic cigarettes the percentage increases to 16% and 9%, respectively.
The WHO warns that this “transition” to electronic cigarettes as the most popular choice requires specific actions, including their appearance in video games, entertainment programs and other content for young people through multimedia platforms.
The report also confirms that the gender gap in substance use was reduced “quickly” and that 15-year-old girls equal or surpass boys in tobacco, alcohol and electronic cigarettes.
O cannabis consumptionhowever, shows a slight decrease: the percentage of young people under 15 who tried it fell from 14 to 12%, between 2018 and 2022.
Tags: warns urgent measures alcohol cigarette consumption among young people
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