Tobacco, heated tobacco products, e-cigarette, alcohol, cannabis and other psychotropic substances. Polysubstance use during the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy

Abstract

Objective: Psychoactive substance use is largely found to involve multiple substances. In recent years, the COVID-19 pandemic has changed psychoactive substance use patterns. Aim of this study is to investigate profiles of polysubstance and their pattern during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: We collected information on alcohol consumption, use of tobacco, cannabis and other psychotropic substances, and nicotine-containing electronic devices (NCEDs; i.e., heated tobacco products and electronic cigarettes) on representative samples of the Italian adult population in five surveys from 2020 to 2023 (3,000≤n≤6,600). We used a Latent Class Analysis model to identify substance use profiles and their associated variables in each time period.

Results: We initially identified two profiles, "light users", characterized by a low use of tobacco and NCEDs (3%-20%) and a 40% at-risk alcohol consumption, and "polysubstance users", characterized by a large use of all psychoactive substances. After the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown, we also found the "dual users" profile, which show a large use of tobacco (90%) and NCEDs (50%), and also alcohol (50%). Being "dual users" and "polysubstance users" were associated with younger age and high economic status, with strengths of association less pronounced during lockdown but more marked immediately thereafter. Moreover, reporting anxiety or depressive symptoms as well as using psychotropic drugs were strongly associated with both profiles, especially in the last two years.

Conclusions: Heterogeneity of polysubstance users and their socio-demographic characteristics need to be considered to design tailored prevention interventions, with special attention to the new "dual users" profile, which confirmed the increasing trend in NCED use.