Unsafe Substances Use among Secondary School Students in Rural Areas

Abstract

ubstance use is one of the world‘s most pressing problems threatening people of every age, socio-economic background, geographic region, educational level, and ethnic or racial identity. What is alarming being its gradual change from social disease into a household companion in many communities where people regard its presence as a normal thing in the society. The most startling worldwide trends that have emerged are the increased availability and variety of drugs and the prevalence of unsafe substances use among the youth. Unsafe substances use patterns among youth change rapidly with different drugs becoming popular, unsafe substances use has also expanded to a younger and wider segment of the youth population (Caday, 2017). Unsafe substances use is a maladaptive pattern of substance use leading to clinically significant impairment or distress, wherein the person may also suffer from tolerance and withdrawal, unsafe Substances use refers to the harmful or hazardous use of psychoactive substances including alcohol, opioids, cannabinoids, hypnotics, cocaine, hallucinogens, tobacco, caffeine, nicotine. Unsafe substances use is the taking of drugs or a deliberate use of drugs for purposes other than its intended purpose without the supervision of a physician or a medical practitioner (Philip et al., 2016).