Alcohol use and smoking are associated with young people’s mental health

Trimbos sees a relationship between alcohol use and hyperactivity, attention problems and behavioural problems. Alcohol use is understood to mean drinking and binge drinking in the past month. The researchers see the same relationship among young people who smoke daily and those who smoked in the past month. In addition, young people who drank alcohol or smoked in the past month give their lives a lower average rating.

The Trimbos Institute sees no relationship between drinking alcohol or smoking and problems in (forming) relationships with peers. The researchers also see no relationship between drinking alcohol and emotional problems. The findings are largely consistent with earlier research in the Netherlands and abroad.

No evidence of a cause-and-effect relationship

An important caveat is that these figures only show that there is an association. The HBSC study asks young people about their alcohol and tobacco use and their mental health at the same time. As a result, the researchers cannot determine whether there is a cause-and-effect relationship.

The findings therefore do not prove that drinking alcohol or smoking causes mental health problems among young people. It is also possible, for example, that young people drink alcohol or use tobacco to cope with existing tensions or mental health problems.

Building young people’s resilience helps

“Problematic alcohol use, smoking and mental health problems usually arise from a combination of factors,” says researcher Marieke Rombouts of the Trimbos Institute. Consider, for example, factors in young people’s social lives and environments that make them more vulnerable. For instance, young people are more likely to start drinking themselves if a lot of alcohol is consumed in their environment. Young people who grow up in an environment with little social support are also more vulnerable.

“Fortunately, we also know what can protect young people against this. With that knowledge, we can help prevent problems,” says Marieke Rombouts. “Consider strengthening social-emotional skills, resilience and the ability to stand up for oneself.” This improves their mental health, but can also help them deal with peer pressure or learn to say no to drinking alcohol.

Working together on prevention

If we want to prevent substance use among young people and promote their mental health, it is important to address this together—for example, at school and in the home environment. Marieke Rombouts: “It is good to look at how we can connect prevention programmes and campaigns more closely and investigate how they can reinforce each other.”