For many of us the initial choice about whether to smoke, drink alcohol or engage in illicit drug use is made in our teens. And habits formed at that early stage can be difficult to change.
Which makes the ongoing “European Schools Project on Alcohol and other Drugs in Ireland” (ESPAD) a valuable barometer of lifestyle choices affecting the future health of the nation. In operation since 1995, ESPAD is a programme in more than 40 European countries to collect comparable data on substance use among 15 to16-year-old students.
The latest report from the Irish arm of the project, based on data from more than 1,400 students here, revealed a significant downward trend in the number of young people starting to smoke.
It found that 13 per cent of 15 to 16-year-olds had smoked a cigarette in the past 30 days compared with a figure of 21 per cent in the 2011 report. In 1995, some four in 10 students were smokers, illustrating the considerable strides being made towards a tobacco-free Ireland.
In relation to alcohol consumption among second level students, ESPAD showed that 36 per cent had drunk alcohol in the last 30 days compared with a figure of 50 per cent in 2011.
While the overall decline is welcome, it is worrying that the majority of those consuming alcohol started drinking before the age of 16. And a continued high level of binge drinking must be a major source of concern.
There will also be concern at the apparent cessation of a downward trend in illicit drug use by students in the Republic. Although the prevalence of the use of cannabis and other substances has fallen by more than a half since the project first commenced, a single percentage point increase between 2011 and 2015 suggests the downward trend may have plateaued.
This finding adds urgency to the development of a new national drugs strategy. In particular it underlines the need for a comprehensive review of current public health strategies aimed at dissuading young people from sampling illicit drugs.