Study Links Teen Sports Participation to Lower Cocaine Use

A major study conducted in Ireland has revealed that teenagers who participate in sports and extracurricular activities are significantly less likely to use cocaine and ecstasy. Researchers found that adolescents aged 15 and 16 who do not engage in regular sporting activities are approximately 50 percent more likely to have used cocaine and 54 percent more likely to have tried ecstasy.

The comprehensive research examined the lifestyles of over 5,000 Irish adolescents and discovered that 3.4 percent of participants reported having used cocaine, while nearly 3 percent admitted to trying ecstasy. Dr. Peter Barrett, a consultant in public health medicine at University College Cork (UCC) and one of the study’s authors, expressed concern over the findings, stating, “That’s a very high prevalence, and much higher than European norms.”

Dr. Barrett emphasized the normalization of cocaine use among young people in Ireland, describing it as a significant public health issue. He highlighted the need for both reducing the availability of such substances and implementing preventative measures to deter teenagers from using them altogether.

The research indicates that involvement in extracurricular activities serves as a protective factor against drug use. Dr. Barrett noted that while the positive effects were particularly evident in sports participation, engagement in arts, music, drama, and other activities also contributed to lower drug usage rates. He remarked, “What it’s showing us is that teenagers who have a lot of unstructured free time… are more likely to be using drugs.”

This study, a collaboration between UCC, the Health Service Executive (HSE), and the Western Region Drug and Alcohol Task Force, also explored the impact of parental influence. Findings revealed that teenagers who experienced less monitoring from their parents were significantly more likely to have used cocaine or ecstasy. Specifically, adolescents who spend time unsupervised outside after midnight were about six times more likely to have used these drugs compared to their peers who do not engage in such activities.

Furthermore, the research highlighted a troubling correlation between mental health and drug use among adolescents. Those who described their mental health as “bad/very bad” had over threefold increased odds of having used cocaine and more than fivefold increased odds of prior ecstasy use.

Dr. Barrett advocates for increased parental involvement and monitoring as a protective measure against drug use. He proposed the introduction of a subsidized leisure card for teenagers, inspired by a successful model in Iceland. “We are calling for serious discussion given to the idea of a subsidised leisure card, or recreation card, that we’ve seen has worked in other international jurisdictions,” he stated.

In Iceland, approximately 80 percent of teenagers utilize a leisure card valued at around €500 annually, applicable to a wide range of extracurricular activities. According to Dr. Barrett, this initiative has yielded impressive results, with cocaine use among Icelandic teenagers dropping from 3 percent in 2003 to 1.4 percent in 2019, while ecstasy use declined from 3 percent to 1.3 percent during the same timeframe.

The study has been published in the PLOS One journal, further contributing to the ongoing conversation about youth drug use and the importance of structured activities in safeguarding adolescent health. The findings call for a proactive approach to prevent substance use among teenagers, underscoring the critical role of both community and parental engagement.