Fulltext

Health literacy and substance use in young Swiss men

Dermota, Petra ; Wang, Jen ; Dey, Michelle ; Gmel, Gerhard ; Studer, Joseph ; Mohler-Kuo, Meichun

In: International Journal of Public Health, 2013, vol. 58, no. 6, p. 939-948

Zum persönliche Liste hinzufügen
    Titel
    • Health literacy and substance use in young Swiss men
    Autor
    • Dermota, Petra. Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine, University of Zurich, Hirschengraben 84, 8001, Zurich, Switzerland
    • Wang, Jen. Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine, University of Zurich, Hirschengraben 84, 8001, Zurich, Switzerland
    • Dey, Michelle. Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine, University of Zurich, Hirschengraben 84, 8001, Zurich, Switzerland
    • Gmel, Gerhard. Alcohol Treatment Centre, Lausanne University Hospital CHUV, Lausanne, Switzerland
    • Studer, Joseph. Alcohol Treatment Centre, Lausanne University Hospital CHUV, Lausanne, Switzerland
    • Mohler-Kuo, Meichun. Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine, University of Zurich, Hirschengraben 84, 8001, Zurich, Switzerland
    Dokumententyp
    • Postprint
    Sprache
    • Englisch
    Veröffentlicht in
    • International Journal of Public Health, 2013, vol. 58, no. 6, p. 939-948. Springer Basel
    Andere elektronische Ausgabe
    OAI-PMH-ID
    • oai:doc.rero.ch:319299
    Summary
    Objectives: The purpose of the present study was to describe health literacy and its association with substance use among young men. Methods: The present study was part of the Cohort Study on Substance Use Risk Factors that included 11,930 Swiss males participating in initial screening from August 2010 to July 2011. Self-completed questionnaires covered use of three substances and three components of health literacy. Results: Roughly 22% reported having searched the Internet for health information and 16% for information on substances over the past 12months. At-risk and not at-risk users of alcohol (adjusted odds ratio (AOR)=2.50 and 1.46), tobacco (AOR=2.51 and 1.79) and cannabis (AOR=4.86 and 3.53) searched for information about substances significantly more often via the Internet than abstainers. Furthermore, at-risk users reported better knowledge of risks associated with substance use and a marginally better ability to understand health information than abstainers. Conclusions: Substance users appear to be more informed and knowledgeable about the risks of substance use than non-users. Consequently, interventions that focus only on information provision may be of limited benefit for preventing substance use