Tobacco, nicotine, alcohol, cannabis, other drugs and substances

ESPAD Ireland 2024 provides information on prevalence estimates of use of substances including cigarettes, e-cigarettes, alternative tobacco and nicotine products, alcohol, cannabis and other illicit drugs, inhalants, and new psychoactive substances (Chapters 3, 4, and 5). Prevalence estimates for substances are presented for lifetime, last-year, last 30-day (current), weekly, and daily use, as per the questionnaire, along with prevalence estimates of intensive and high-risk substance use, where available in the questionnaire. Age of initiation of use of substances, perceived availability of substances, and the perceived risk associated with occasional and regular use of substances are detailed. For each of the substances described, analyses are presented for four additional variables that we have found in previous ESPAD research to be associated with use of the substance1 2 3 4 5: school absence through truancy, parental monitoring, parental use of the substance, and peer use of the substance.

Gambling, gaming, and social media use

Prevalence estimates of gambling for money, including online gambling, estimates of the proportion of students who gamble and display problem gambling behaviour, and prevalence estimates of gaming, as well as of self-perceived problem use of gaming and social media are presented in Chapter 6.

Trends in substance use 1995-2024

Overall ESPAD Ireland trends, between 1995 and 2024, in use of substances and gambling are detailed in Chapter 8.

Associations with use of substances

Throughout the report, all data are presented by gender, showing responses separately for those who respond male or female, as well as for those who prefer not to say whether they are male or female. In addition to data on use of substances, gambling, gaming, and social media, ESPAD Ireland collects a wide variety of sociodemographic, familial, peer, and behavioural data, with in excess of 500 variables in total. Several hundred additional data analyses are provided in the linked Supplementary Analysis Report, showing associations between these variables and use of various substances, and providing analyses indicating where differences between observed and expected outcomes are statistically significant.