Patterns and Self-Reported Effects of The Use of New Psychoactive Substances (NPS) among Students of Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Anambra State
Author(s):
Chijioke Maxwell Ofomata1* and Onyebuchi Precious Okoji2
New Psychoactive Substances (NPS) represent a significant public health concern in Nigeria, with increasing prevalence and diverse implications for various population groups, including students. A high occurrence of this problem has been found among the student population in Nigeria with few reports on university students, especially in South Eastern Nigeria. Hence, this study aimed to examine the prevalence of NPS use and its resultant effects on students in Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Anambra state. A structured self-administered questionnaire was used to obtain information from randomly selected undergraduate students in the Faculty of Law, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Management Sciences. Collated data was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (version 27). Thirty-three (8.9%) participants out of three hundred and seventy students consented to use NPS. The proportions of female and male students were 54.3% and 45.7%, respectively. The highest substance taken was Colos which was seen to be used by 3% of the population. Most of the students who used these NPS said they were influenced by the media (15.9%) with peer influence as the highest driver for the use of NPS (33.33%), followed by emotional issues (27.27%). 21.2% and 182% agreed that having negative physical and mental effects from the use of NPS. In addition, 15.2% of the users believe that their Academic performance was affected negatively by the use of NPS. For proposed interventions, 3.24% of the participants believed that stricter punishment for offenders should be used to address the issue of NPS use. Other intervention strategies include; public awareness on the use of NPS, restriction on the sale of NPS, and Enlightenment on the dangers involved in NPS use, to mention but a few.
