The Prevalence of Alcohol, Cigarette, and Marijuana Use Among Ghanaian Senior Secondary Students in an Urban Setting

Abstract

This study assessed the prevalence of, and the association between alcohol, cigarette, and marijuana use among senior secondary school students in Accra, Ghana. A sample of 894 students (56.9% girls, 43.1% boys; mean age = 17.4 years, SD = 1.40) completed a modified version of the Youth Risk Behavior Survey questionnaire. Analytical techniques utilized included chi-square and logistic regression. Overall, lifetime alcohol use was 25.1%; lifetime cigarette use was 7.5%; and lifetime marijuana use was 2.6%. Among lifetime users, current alcohol use was 46.2%; current cigarette use was 44.6%; and current marijuana use was 58.3%. Boys were significantly more likely than girls to be lifetime users of all three drugs, but not as current users. Logistic regression analysis indicated that the lifetime use of both cigarette and marijuana appears to be strongly associated with lifetime alcohol use, which is more prevalent. The results of this study showed lower prevalence rates than those reported in other African countries and in Western societies. Nonetheless, there is the need to strengthen current prevention programs through better education of school-going adolescents primarily because of the increasing availability of, and the unrestricted access to, cigarette and alcohol products in Ghana at this time.