Alcohol Use Related Consequences among Students in Selected Universities in Kenya
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Abstract
Alcohol use and abuse among the youths, particularly the university students, is an issue of public health concern. Alcohol abuse is associated with numerous negative consequences, which include being the primary cause of death among the youths in the world. As a result, it was imperative to document the extent of the consequences experienced by university students in Kenya in order to inform on the policies and other interventions. The purpose of this study was to establish the consequences of alcohol use among students in selected universities in Kenya. The objectives of the study were to establish consequences of alcohol use and alcohol harm to others (AHTO). The study was carried out in 2014, in four purposively selected universities including 2 private faith-based universities and 2 public universities. The accessible population was 19,177 students from the main campuses of the four universities. The sample size was 380 students. About 374 students responded to a structured self-administered questionnaire. Effects of alcohol were measured by a set of 15 questions, while AHTO was measured by a set of 9 questions. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 21.0. Adverse effects mostly reported were running broke (54.7%), feeling sad/depressed (49.6%), absconding classes (48.9%), getting poor grades (48.9%) and engaging in unplanned sexual activity (29.1%). AHTO experienced included disturbed sleep (57.7%), distraction from studies (41.7%), “baby sitting” drunk students (27.5%), strained relationships (34.8%), and sexual harassment (10.5%). This study concluded that consequences of alcohol use are many and harmful. Secondly, other students who are not necessarily users are affected by alcohol use by their colleagues. Therefore, this study recommended that university managements and all the stake holders implement various measures to control consumption of alcohol among students in Kenyan universities and to protect others from experiencing AHTO.
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