Alcohol Use and its Determinants among Youth Attending Mental Health Promotion Clinics in India: a State-Wide Case Record Analysis

Author(s): Gautham Melur Sukumar, Aravind Banavaram , Pradeep Banandur S, Shubhi Nema, Vaishali Dagar, Sathya Velu, , Vani Naik, Virupaksha Hasiruvalli Gangappa, Mutharaju Arelingaiah, Lavanya Garady.

Background: Alcohol consumption is one among the emerging public health concerns among youth. We estimated prevalence of alcohol use among youth and the factors associated with it among beneficiaries attending YMHPCs (Yuva Spandana Health Promotion Clinics) across Karnataka.

Methods: The cross-sectional case record analysis was performed among 10,340 beneficiaries attending youth mental health promotion clinics named Yuva spandana kendras (YSKs) between 2017 and 2020 across Karnataka (a state in southern India)

Results: Overall, the prevalence of alcohol drinking among beneficiaries was 4 %. The risk of alcohol drinking was significantly high among beneficiaries who were male, married, reported sleep issues, low self- awareness, issues related to goal setting, relationship issues with parents and feeling lonely. On the other hand, education status, beneficiaries reporting education and academic issues and having average relationship status with friends were found to be protective against alcohol drinking. Among the factors associated with high risk of alcohol consumption, beneficiaries having relationship issue with parents had highest odds (~6 times) followed by those reporting sleep issues (5 times), male beneficiaries (3.5 times), being married (2 times), had issues related to goal setting (1.9 times) and feeling lonely (1.6 times) compared to their respective counterparts

Conclusion: Triad of health education, health promotion and appropriate interventions like Yuva Spandana aiming at observed interaction of alcohol drinking and its determinants can be a useful way to identify youth at risk of alcohol use and intervene early.