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The Role of Individual and Social Mediators in the Association Between Drug Consumption and Mental Health Among Adolescents in Barcelona

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Abstract

This study aims to analyze whether there is an association between poor mental health and high-risk cannabis and alcohol use in adolescents attending secondary schools in the city of Barcelona, and to analyze which individual and/or contextual variables mediate this association. Prevalence of risk of poor mental health, binge drinking, high-risk cannabis use, and comorbidity were stratified by sex. To analyze the association between poor mental health and high-risk cannabis and alcohol use, multilevel linear regression models were constructed, obtaining regression coefficients and confidence intervals at 95%. Poor mental health among adolescents is associated with high-risk cannabis use, and association remains after adjusting for individual and contextual variables. Binge drinking shows a weak association with poor mental health that is only significant in girls. This study emphasizes the relevance of focusing on the context in which students live, specifically the school environment, in order to prevent high-risk drug use and poor mental health.

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Funding

This research was supported by the Spanish Network on Addictive Disorders (grant numbers RD12/0028/0018 and RD16/0017/0013) and had also the financial support of Plan Nacional de Drogas [Grant number (2016I029)].

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

    Lluís Mangot-Sala, Marina Bosque-Prous, Montse Bartroli, Ester Teixidó-Compañó, Maria Teresa Brugal & Albert Espelt

  2. Departament de Ciències Experimentals i de la salut, Facultat de Ciències de la Salut i de la Vida, Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), Barcelona, Spain

    Montse Bartroli, Ester Teixidó-Compañó & Maria Teresa Brugal

  3. CIBER de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), Barcelona, Spain

    Albert Espelt

  4. Facultat de Ciències de la Salut de Manresa, Universitat de Vic Universitat Central de Catalunya (UVicUCC), Av.Universitària, 08242, Manresa, Spain

    Albert Espelt

  5. Departament de Psicobiologia i Metodologia en Ciències de la Salut, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

    Albert Espelt

Authors
  1. Lluís Mangot-Sala
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  2. Marina Bosque-Prous
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  3. Montse Bartroli
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  5. Maria Teresa Brugal
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  6. Albert Espelt
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Correspondence to Albert Espelt.

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Mangot-Sala, L., Bosque-Prous, M., Bartroli, M. et al. The Role of Individual and Social Mediators in the Association Between Drug Consumption and Mental Health Among Adolescents in Barcelona. Int J Ment Health Addiction 17, 1374–1388 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11469-018-9879-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11469-018-9879-7

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