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Journal of Health Inequalities
eISSN: 2450-5722
ISSN: 2450-5927
Journal of Health Inequalities
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1/2025
vol. 11
 
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abstract:
Original paper

Youth attitudes and behaviours towards new psychoactive substances over the period 2017-2023 – a comparative analysis of trends, determinants and risks

Paulina Wojtyła-Buciora
1, 2
,
Wojciech Kapała
1
,
Zuzanna Chęcińska-Maciejewska
1
,
Katarzyna Sygit
1
,
Katarzyna Wojtyła-Blicharska
3
,
Franciszek Kaczmarek
4
,
Marianna Nowak
1
,
Paweł Kalinowski
5

  1. Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Kalisz, Poland
  2. Department of Physiology, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, Poland
  3. Ludwik Perzyna Provincial Hospital in Kalisz, Poland
  4. Student Scientific Society, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, Poland
  5. Department of Hygiene and Epidemiology, Medical University of Lublin, Poland
J Health Inequal 2025; 11 (1): 37–45
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5114/jhi.2025.152573
Online publish date: 2025/07/07
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Introduction:
One area of particular social concern remains young people’s contact with psychoactive substances – both classic drugs and so-called “legal highs”, i.e. new psychoactive substances (NPS).

Material and methods:
In 2017, a survey was conducted on a randomly selected group of 2191, and in 2023 on a group of 1346 secondary school students in the Wielkopolska province in Poland. The research tool used in both studies was a survey questionnaire developed by a research team appointed at the Chief Sanitary Inspectorate. The questionnaire was modelled on the questionnaire used in the Global School-based Student Health Survey (GSHS). Statistical analyses were performed using the STATISTICA 12 (2017 survey) and STATISTICA 13 (2023 survey) environments.

Results:
The study shows that, in the perspective of the few years separating the surveys (2017 vs. 2023), the percentage of pupils who admitted that they had tried legal highs 2-5 times (23.3% vs. 9.7%) decreased and the percentage of pupils who had tried legal highs 6 or more times also decreased (23.3% vs. 18.5%). Our own research shows that adolescents initiate the use of legal highs at a very young age. In the 2017 study, the average age at which adolescents used legal highs for the first time was 14.2 years, while in 2023 it decreased slightly and is now 13.8 years, a difference of only 0.4 per cent.

Conclusions:
Based on the analysis of the 2017 and 2023 data, it can be concluded that young people’s contact with psychoactive substances is gradually decreasing. Both the percentage of pupils who have been offered legal highs or drugs and the number of regular users have decreased. At the same time, a decrease in the age of initiation has been noticed, which indicates the need to target prevention to younger groups.

keywords:

new psychoactive substances (NPS), adolescents, legal highs
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