Prevalence of Alcohol Consumption among University Students in Baghdad: A Cross-section survey from Iraq

Background: Alcohol consumption is a well-known public health problem, particularly among university students. It was poorly studied in Middle East, especially in Iraq, due to religious and social taboos. This study conducted to throw a light on the prevalence of alcohol consumption among university students in Baghdad. Subjects and methods: A survey conducted in three universities (Baghdad, Al-Mustansiriyah and Al-Nahrain) from Baghdad city between January and May 2015. Semi-structured questionnaire form was used (Arabic translated) to collect the data from 1435 university students. The sample was selected by multistage cluster technique with probability proportion to size. Results: The average age (range) of the studied sample was 19.8 (18 -24) years; more than a half of them were females 760 (53%). Alcohol consumption was reported by 9.7% (95% CI: 8.2% -11.2%) of the participants (19.7% males vs. 0.8% females). Heavy alcohol consumption was reported by 12.2% of consumers. Students living out of their families or relatives and those of non-medical group colleges found to be risk factors for alcohol consumption (PR= 2.688, 95% CI: 1.764 -4.094) and (PR=2.586, 95% CI: 1.432 -4.67) respectively. Conclusions: Consumption of alcohol was relatively prevalent among university students in Baghdad, in spite of religious and social barriers in Iraq. Family and college staff supervision and education of the students with meetings targeting health risks and sequels of hazardous alcohol consumption are the effective ways to control this practice.