A man smoking marijuana (ganja). A Ministry of Health survey has found that the harmful use of alcohol is most evident among the 25-35 age group, while current ganja use is most prevalent among the 18-25 age group.
KINGSTON, Jamaica--A Ministry of Heath snapshot study of the current landscape of drug use among Jamaicans has revealed “clear indications of increases in substance use over the past seven years”, with alcohol prevalence rates for the individual parishes of Trelawny, St. Ann and Kingston outstripping the national prevalence rate which now stands at 46.2%.
According to the data, which is contained in the 2023 Jamaica Drug Prevalence Statistics released by the Ministry of Health on Monday, “alcohol prevalence is significantly higher” in Trelawny (57.5%), St. Ann (54.3%) and Kingston (52.2%).
Other parishes with high alcohol usage are Hanover (46.8%), St. Elizabeth (41.5%), Clarendon (48.1%), St. Catherine (50.4%), St. Mary (43%) and St. Thomas (44.5%).
Health Minister Dr. Christopher Tufton, in unveiling the findings during a press briefing in the Corporate Area, said the surge was “most notable” in the 4% increase last year in alcohol use (56% to 60%) as well as in the current year (42% to 46%) and the same level of increase last year in the use of cigarettes (12.7% to 16.8%).
According to the health minister, harmful use of alcohol is most evident among the 25-35 age group while current marijuana (ganja) use is most prevalent among the 18-25 age group. Tufton said among those who smoke cigarettes, daily use increased from 7% in 2016 to 11.6% at present.
The health minister, in the meantime, said another concerning finding was the fact that among people who smoked ganja in the past year, approximately 66% were deemed as high risk for dependence, representing a 15% increase from the 50% seven years ago.
“This is significant and we need to pay keen attention as it reflects what studies are showing in other countries that have changed their cannabis regulatory framework [legalisation/decriminalisation – Ed.],” Tufton told the briefing.
“What we are seeing is that the overall prevalence has not increased significantly, but the intensity of use among those who already use has increased. This is what other countries have also found,” he said further.
Health officials have also found that the number of people driving under the influence of alcohol has increased since 2016, from 14.4% to 17.5%.
“Approximately 18% of drivers have driven on our roads under the influence of alcohol in the past year with significantly more males (23.9%) than females (5.2%) reporting this. This practice is the highest reported among the 25-34 age group – approximately one in three persons in this age group,” Tufton revealed.
Conversely, he said, 10% of drivers reported driving under the influence of other drugs (to include cannabis and other illegal drugs), down from 14% in 2016.
In the meantime, Tufton said the data revealed that the use of edibles (cannabis-infused food) has increased by 7% (from 6.6% in 2016 to 13.3% in 2023).
According to the minister, health officials are “not surprised by this finding as the popularity of edibles is evident among youth and young adults, popular in parties and stage shows and easily accessible in a variety of places island-wide”.
Based on the data, 10% of adolescents 15-17 years reported use of edibles. It said the highest level of use was reported among men in the 35-44 age group (which translates to 28%, or almost three in 10, and women in the 25-34 age group (13%).
On Monday, Tufton said the audit tool used in the study, which determined the type of intervention needed depending on the alcohol use pattern, showed that “the majority of our population need education about alcohol (75.7%) and approximately 20% need simple advice”.
“When broken down by parish, specialised treatment services are most needed in Clarendon, St. James and KSA, while brief interventions are most needed in Trelawny, Westmoreland, Manchester, Clarendon and KSA. There is more to drill down with the data to tailor interventions according to the landscape of needs,” Tufton told the briefing.
A National Drug Research Network, said the minister, is to be established. It will comprise academics and technical experts who will draft an agenda for drug research that goes beyond prevalence studies for a deeper dive into the issues. He said initiatives geared toward the high-risk areas and groups will also be informed by these findings.
The data in the study were drawn from some 4,991 respondents island-wide. ~ Jamaica Observer ~
