Tobacco and alcohol use among adolescents and young adults in aspirational districts in India: NFHS-5 based secondary analysis

Abstract

Introduction: an early initiation of alcohol and tobacco use is associated with addiction and significant health complications. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and associated factors of tobacco and alcohol usage among adolescents (15-19 years) and young adults (20-24 years) in India's aspirational districts.

Methods: data from India's biggest demographic and health survey, the National Family Health Survey-5 (NHFS-5), 2019-21, were reviewed. Alcohol and tobacco (in any form) usage were measured using the self-reported binary responses. Multivariate binary logistic regression was used to examine relationships with different demographic variables.

Results: among the 47,343 individuals, tobacco usage was substantially higher in men than women (adolescents: 15.9% versus 1.2%; young adults: 31.8% versus 2.2%). The prevalence of alcohol usage was also higher among men (adolescents: 8.1% versus 0.4%; young adults: 21.8% versus 1.0%), with statistical significance (p < 0.0001) for all sex-related differences. Use of tobacco and alcohol was significantly associated with illiteracy, male gender, and young adults. A higher prevalence was observed among Christians in rural areas and lower socio-economic settings.

Conclusion: the results highlight the necessity of targeted efforts by appropriate stakeholders and governmental agencies to lower alcohol and tobacco usage, particularly among vulnerable populations. More research is required to determine the root causes of these habits and the related health risk behaviours.