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The Impact Of Drug Abuse Among Youth
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In many cultures, emotional problems and drug abuse are cause for
dishonour. Among traditional Asia-Indians, for example, drug abuse is
perceived as a moral problem contributing to family shame and loss of
prestige. However, drug abuse seems to be on the rise in U.S immigrant
refugee populations from southern Asia, suggestive of cultural
influence. This is quite interesting from a historic perspective. (J
Adolesx Health, 1998).
In Asia, particularly in China, drug abuse
along with its associated health problems, was brought by the British in
the 17th century, but abated following independence of China from the
British Empire. However, since the 1980s, the extensive modernization
and westernization in China since has been associated with increasing
drug abuse, suggestive again of cross-cultural influence. (PsicoHiema,
2008).
The perception of drug abuse by adolescents in the United
State has been well documented. Perception of harm correlated negatively
with illicit drug abuse. Also, adolescents who perceived a strong
parental disapproval of drug use were less likely to abuse drugs.
Participation in religious services correlated with less incidence of
drug abuse among adolescents. On the other hand, subjects engaging in
fights were more likely to abuse drugs. (J.Sch Health, 2001).
Adolescent perception of drug abuse varies and correlates with the
dominant cultural norms, yet leaves many questions unanswered. For
example, in a study of adolescents in South Africa, personal attributes
and peer substance use correlated highly with drug abuse in adolescents.
Parental factors and environmental stressors correlated less strongly
with drug abuse in the same patient sample. (BMC Public Health, 2007).
It is interesting to notice that the adolescent lifetime rate of marijuana in South Africa was significantly less than that in United State (6-12% VS 19.7%). This may be due to the low availability of marijuana compared to other drugs. For example, in Ethiopia, Somalia, Nigeria, and Yemen in the Arabian peninsula, a common drug abuse is an amphetamine-like substance called Cathinone, derived from a flowering plant called ‘’khat’’ or ‘’cathaedulis’’. Chewing khat in Yemen is widespread due to its wild stimulant effect and deep social and cultural tradition, yet it poses significant health risks. (Bernstein R Edwards, 2008).
While it is unclear what the motives are for adolescents to chew khat, it has been suggested that students use it to enhance performance on examination. Although, the regulation of khat was limited to local levels, its worldwide spread especially among immigrant from Eastern Africa countries has spurred classification and subsequent regulation (Lancet, 2007).
Drug abuse is the primary reason why many youths have been incarcerated, as well as been a source of crime and health problem in Nigeria today. The number of youths incarcerated in various prisons across the country has increased dramatically over the last few decades. Majority of these youths have been arrested for drug offences or have a drug abuse problem. However, since the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) was setup in 1999, frantic efforts were made to collect relevant information on drugs through variety of drug indicators for policy formulation. The impact of these agencies in terms of intervention strategies and control is tremendous. (J.W Sort, 1994).
Drug abuse among youths in Enugu, Nsukka has been a problem to the youths and the society in general. The consequences of drug abuse are not only on the individual user but also on his or her offspring, family and the society. Drugs are commonly used by everybody whether old or young. It is time that drugs are used for beneficent therapeutic purposes, effective substances for good health, but they are being abused by people especially the youths. (Onodahro. A ,1999).
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