A Study of Addictive Behavior among University Students
Badr Adouani *
Pharmacology and Toxicology Laboratory, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Hassan II University of Casablanca, Morocco.
Youssef Moutaouakkil
Pharmacology and Toxicology Laboratory, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Mohammed V University of Rabat, Morocco.
Mina Ait Elcadi
Pharmacology and Toxicology Laboratory, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Mohammed V University of Rabat, Morocco.
Rachid Eljaoudi
Pharmacology and Toxicology Laboratory, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Mohammed V University of Rabat, Morocco.
Ahmed El Yaakoubi
Pharmacology and Toxicology Laboratory, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Mohammed V University of Rabat, Morocco.
Yassir Bousliman
Pharmacology and Toxicology Laboratory, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Mohammed V University of Rabat, Morocco.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Drug abuse is a public health issue, particularly among adolescents and young adults. Therefore, the purpose of our study is to determine the prevalence rate of drugs use and to identify certain factors that can serve as predictors of drug use. A total of 431 students from Mohammed V University in Rabat participated in this descriptive cross-sectional survey. The prevalence of drug use (regular users and experimenters) was 32.9%. Cannabis has a frequency of 13%, whereas other substances and other psychotropics have a prevalence of 3.8%. The most common average age of onset of substance use was 15. Males had the greatest likelihood of becoming drug addicts. We discovered a high consumption of drugs among university students at the end of this work, implying the need to establish a programme to combat drug addiction, the starting point of which will undoubtedly be prevention at the primary and secondary school levels, requiring the participation of all those involved in the field of education.
Keywords: Drug abuse, addiction, student population, cannabis, psychotropic drugs