March 17, 2016 · Team HG
Research has shown that European teenagers smoke, drink, and use cannabis less compared to a few years ago. They are also having sex for the first time at an increasingly later age, reports the NOS. The World Health Organization (WHO) conducted research on 200,000 teenagers aged 11 to 15 from 42 countries.
Smoking
Compared to other European countries, Dutch youth smoke relatively little: 11% of 15-year-olds smoke a cigarette at least once a week. In countries such as Croatia, Italy, Hungary, and Bulgaria, smoking is much more prevalent. Bulgaria has the highest smoking rate: 25% of 15-year-olds light a cigarette weekly. Nevertheless, European teenagers are generally starting to smoke at an increasingly later age compared to 2009, possibly due to rising excise taxes and the declining number of places where smoking is still permitted today.
Smoking weed
In the Netherlands, teenagers smoke cannabis much less than in other European countries, even though access to soft drugs is easier here. Nevertheless, only 17% of 15-year-old Dutch people have ever smoked a joint, whereas in France this figure is 27% and the percentage in Estonia and Switzerland is 24%.
Drinks
In the Netherlands, research shows that 11- and 13-year-olds hardly drink alcohol. The number of teenagers who drink weekly is between 1% and 2% of the total among the study participants. Youth researcher Gonneke Stevens, who was involved in the research on behalf of the Netherlands WHO study notes that parents nowadays are quicker to tell their children not to drink. However, this changes as the teenager gets older. In fact, 15% of Dutch 15-year-olds have a drink weekly. 17% indicate having been drunk (more than) twice. In this regard, the number in the Netherlands is not striking compared to neighboring countries.
Sex and contraceptives
In the Netherlands, 16 percent of 15-year-olds have had sex, which is significantly less than in 2009. “In only four European countries is that percentage lower,” says Stevens. “It could be related to lower alcohol consumption.” Teenagers start earliest in Bulgaria (31%), Hungary (28%), and Denmark (27%).
In terms of contraceptives, Dutch teenagers perform reasonably well compared to the rest of Europe: nearly 72 percent of 15-year-olds used a condom the last time they had sex. This means the Dutch do so considerably more regularly than, for example, residents of Sweden (54%), Malta (41%), and Poland (26%). Additionally, 66% of Dutch girls used the contraceptive pill, placing them in the top three among the countries surveyed. Only the number of Belgian and German girls who report using it is higher.
Life satisfaction
The question of whether Dutch youth are now also less happy due to the reducing use of tobacco, soft drugs, and alcohol, and the later age at which people have sex for the first time, is quickly refuted by Gonneke Stevens. “Dutch youth are at the top when it comes to life satisfaction, and they are the most positive about their relationships with classmates. So they are simply doing something healthy.”
Bullying and fighting
In addition, the World Health Organization conducted research into the amount of bullying (including online) and fighting. In all cases studied, the Netherlands is in the minority compared to other European countries in this regard.
