This week’s International Report on the 2015 European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs (ESPAD) found that between 2011 and 2015 there was a positive decline in the use of alcohol and cigarettes amongst Maltese adolescents. During the same period, it was also noted that there was a decline amongst all students in lifetime use of inhalants.

The report was launched on Tuesday Aġenzija Sedqa, the National Agency against Drug & Alcohol Abuse.

The 2015 ESPAD reports feature information on students’ experience of a variety of substances including: tobacco, alcohol, illicit drugs, inhalants, pharmaceuticals and new psychoactive substances (NPS). The reports also provide information on internet use and online gaming and gambling, all of which were monitored for the first time in this survey round.

The international report, published in collaboration with the EU drugs agency (EMCDDA), is based on a 2015 survey conducted in 35 European countries, with 96,043 students participating in the survey. The national report is based on responses from 3,226 Form 5 students from Malta and Gozo, who responded in school to an anonymous questionnaire. This is the sixth data-collection wave conducted by the ESPAD project since 1995 (every four years), the latest round coinciding with its 20th anniversary.

On an international level alcohol use among adolescents remains high, but time trends show some positive developments. Heavy episodic drinking remains a concern. Smoking is showing signs of decline, against a backdrop of tobacco policy measures introduced over the last two decades, but there are concerns over challenges posed by new drugs and new addictive behaviour.

Over the last 20 years ESPAD has been providing reliable and comparable data on the extent and nature of the use of alcohol, cigarettes and other drugs. It has become a leading measure of substance use among young people across Europe and within Malta, offering a base for prevention and action within schools and communities and a scientific tool by which national and international polices, practices and strategies are developed and evaluated. In particular, the data from Malta will be used to guide policy makers and direct Aġenzija Sedqa in the provision of care and prevention services.  The latest ESPAD study has widened its scope to include new drugs as well as new and potentially addictive behaviours, such as excessive internet use, gaming and gambling. This furthers it contribution in protecting young people from the detrimental effects of such behaviour.

The national study is coordinated by Sharon Arpa, Research, Senior Executive, within the Foundation for Social Welfare Services in collaboration with the Directorate for Educational Services (DES), the Student Services Department, Education Psycho-Social Services, the Anti-Substance Abuse Service within the Education Psycho-Social Services, the Directorate for Education in Church Schools, and the Independent Schools Association (ISA).

Malta’s results:

• A high percentage of students reported consuming alcohol during their lifetime (86%), the last 12 months (80%) and the last 30 days (54%);
• Some 38% of students had been drunk on at least one occasion in their lifetime, 31% reported being intoxicated in the last 12 months and 14% in the last 30 days;
• Almost half of all students (47%) had engaged in heavy episodic drinking (i.e.  consumed five or more drinks on one occasion) during the 30 days prior to the study;
• Many students first use alcohol at a young age. At the age of 13 or younger a relatively high percentage of students had consumed at least one glass of wine (41%), beer (38%), spirits (25%), alcopops (20%) or cider (18%);
• Alcohol is highly accessible. During the 30 days prior to the study, 37% of students had purchased an alcoholic beverage off-premise (e.g. in a store or kiosk) for their own consumption, while 50% of students had consumed an alcoholic beverage on-premise (in a pub, bar, club or disco);
• Between 2011 and 2015 there was a decline in alcohol use,  including a reduction in the percentage of students using alcohol 40 times or more in their lifetime (from 30% to 20%) and in the percentage using alcohol 20 times or more in the last year (28% to 18%). There was also a reduction in the last-30-day rates of: alcohol use 10 times or more (18% to 10%), heavy episodic drinking (56% to 47%) and heavy episodic drinking 3 times or more (31% to 22%);
• Some 29% of students had smoked cigarettes during their lifetime and 15% had smoked in the last 30 days, with 8% smoking less than one cigarette a day;
• Before the age of 14, 13% of students had smoked their first cigarette and 3% had started to smoke on a daily basis;
• Between 2011 and 2015 there was a decline in the use of cigarettes. For example, reductions were observed in the lifetime prevalence of cigarette smoking (from 38% to 29%), the lifetime prevalence of cigarette smoking 40 times or more (12% to 8%) and cigarette smoking in the last 30 days (22% to 15%);
• The substances most frequently reported as having ever been used after alcohol and cigarettes were: cannabis (13%) and inhalants (8%), followed by synthetic cannabis (7%), alcohol together with pills to get high (5%), painkillers to get high (3%) tranquillisers or sedatives without a prescription (3%), cocaine (3%) and ecstasy (2%);
• 3% of students reported using new psychoactive substance in the last 12 months;
• Between 2011 and 2015, among all students, lifetime use of inhalants declined from 14% to 8%;
• Most respondents (87%) reported using the internet during at least 4 of the previous 7 days;
• During the previous 7 days participants engaged in a range of internet activities. Students were most likely to engage in social media activities on a regular basis (85% on 4 or more days). This was followed by streaming/downloading (48%), information seeking/surfing (36%), online gaming (24%), consumption-related activities (13%) and online gambling (1%);
• Overall, 44% of students reported using social media for 4 or more hours on a typical day during the last 30 days. This was followed by streaming/downloading (21%), online gaming (15%), information seeking/surfing (12%), consumption activities (4%) and online gambling (1%);
• Some 7% of students reported gambling money in the preceding year.

In comparison to other countries participating in ESPAD, noticeable differences in the results from Malta include: 

• Higher rates of alcohol use (e.g. last-30 days: Malta-54% vs. ESPAD average-48%) and heavy episodic drinking (e.g. last-30 days: Malta-47% vs. ESPAD average-35%);
• Lower rates of cigarette use (e.g. last-30 days: Malta-15% vs. ESPAD average-21%);
• Lower rates of gambling for money (e.g. last-12 months: Malta-7% vs. ESPAD average-14%).

Speaking during the launch of the National ESPAD Report, Family Minister Michael Farrugia said the results were encouraging.

Educational campaigns in media and in schools are starting to give results, he said. “But we don’t have to allude ourselves and think that we solved the addictions within our youths. While it is very positive to note that the use of Inhalants and the combination of Alcohol together with pills have drastically declined from 2011. The use of Cocaine, Ecstasy, Crack, LSD and Heroin are practically in the same percentage as 2011, the use of Cannabis has increased from 10% in 2011 to almost 15% in 2015. Therefore we still have a number of young people, practically children, who are addicted to hard drugs. One magistrate after another has been inciting the government for more than 20 years to do something about this problem.”

Dr Farrugia referred to the recent agreement with Caritas Malta to open the first rehabilitation facility for youths under 18 years in Malta.

He also said he was very concerned about the increase of road fatalities on our roads as a result of drunk driving.

“As I said earlier when you compare data there are concerning trends, for instance, data from ESPAD shows how since 1999, the trend has been a downward decline in most patterns of alcohol use among young people aged 15 and 16. Lifetime use of alcohol declined from 36% to 20% in 2015. Alcohol use in the last 12 months declined from 51% in 1999 to 19 % in 2015, while alcohol use in the last 30 days declined from 30% to 11%. Heavy episodic drinking in the last month declined from 57% in 2007 to 47% in 2015. Lifetime drunkenness also registered a decline with 45% reported having been drunk in 2007 and 38% in 2015. Drunkenness in the last 30 days also declined from 19% in 2007 to 15% in 2015. Those reporting being drunk at 13 years or younger declined from 14% in 1999 to 8% in 2015. While these reductions in the student population are very encouraging further efforts may be directed towards young people between the ages of 18 to 24.”

A copy of the 2015 National ESPAD Report and the 2015 International ESPAD IReport is available for download from www.sedqa.gov.mt