One in Five Central Catalonia Teens Drink Riskily
The study, which was presented on the opening day of the fair, on 24 April, at the facilities of UManresa (UVic-UCC), was based on data collected during the 2023/24 academic year among 8,380 boys and girls between 12 and 18 years of age. Despite the ban on the sale of tobacco and alcohol to minors, the results warn of a high exposure to these substances in the environment of schools, especially in urban areas, which contributes to normalising consumption among adolescents and minimising the risk perception of these consumptions. The study shows an average of 33 elements per educational centre, including establishments where alcoholic beverages are sold or consumed, signs of consumption on public roads, such as cans or bottles of alcoholic beverages, and promotional elements or advertisements; and 49 elements related to tobacco near the education centres, highlighting the signs of consumption on public roads, mainly cigarette butts.
The study also shows significant differences between males and females: 37.5% of the girls surveyed reported mental distress, compared to 18.5% of boys. In addition, 43.4% of the girls reported having suffered episodes of stress, anxiety or depression. Half of the adolescents have tried electronic cigarettes at some moment; and 2.4% of the boys and 1.8% of the girls show a risky use of cannabis.
In addition to contributing to research, the DESKCohort project has a clear vocation for community impact: each participating school receives a biannual report with its results. In this way, each secondary school has information on specific needs that allows it to act and implement programmes to respond to the results. These results are also very useful for planning, implementing and evaluating actions related to public health, which contribute to implementing policies to improve health and reduce social inequalities in health.
Inaugural day: research, debate and community action
The inaugural day of Fes-te Salut! brought together institutional representatives, health and education professionals, and members of the research community to address adolescent substance use from a comprehensive perspective. The event was attended by Isabel Sánchez, Delegate Councillor for Children and Youth of the Manresa City Council; Gemma Tarafa, Delegate Deputy for Public Health of the Barcelona Provincial Council; and representatives of the universities promoting the project: Ander Chamarro, dean of the Faculty of Psychology and Speech Therapy of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona; Mireia Torralba, dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences of Manresa; and Albert Espelt, professor of the Department of Psychobiology and Methodology of Health Science of the UAB and principal investigator of DESKcohort. The conclusion was given by Carmen Cabezas, former Director General of Public Health of the Government of Catalonia. The presentation also served to highlight the importance of launching coordinated public policies. “We cannot do it alone”, affirmed Joan Colom, director of the WHO Collaborating Centre and former deputy general director of Addictions and Infectious Diseases of the Catalan Public Health Agency.
The event was the first of the activities of the Fes-te Salut! fair, an initiative to promote youth health promoted by the inter-institutional research group epi4health (UAB-UOC-UVic-UCC), the TECSAM Network, the Manresa City Council, ministries of the Government of Catalonia and the Barcelona Provincial Council. Fes-te Salut! will offer a variety of activities on 25 and 26 April at the Palau Firal of Manresa, and aims to be a meeting point for the research and educational community, institutions and citizens to foster healthy lifestyles and reduce health inequalities.
https://www.uab.cat/web/newsroom/news-detail/-1345830290613.html?detid=1345952301624