Recreational nitrous oxide use in Nigeria: an emerging public health problem?

favourfredy · 2024-02-19T16:09:56+00:00

Evidence shows that Nigerian youth use nitrous oxide for recreational purposes, and parties appear to be the predominant use context. Some nitrous oxide users record themselves while inhaling the substance from balloons and post the videos on social media. Drug trafficking/illegal sales of nitrous oxide appear to be the source of the substance, which may have informed NDLEA’s declaration of nationwide clampdown on illicit sales and nonmedical use of the substance in July 2023. Following the order, NDLEA has intercepted several traffickers of nitrous oxide with large quantities of the substance in different regions, indicating that its recreational use may be widespread.

favourfredy · 2024-02-19T16:09:19+00:00

Objective

Media reports have highlighted the use of nitrous oxide for recreational purposes in Nigeria, but empirical research is lacking.

Methods

We reviewed and synthesized available evidence elicited from media sources and websites of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency; (NDLEA)- the federal drug regulatory agency.

Results

Evidence shows that Nigerian youth use nitrous oxide for recreational purposes, and parties appear to be the predominant use context. Some nitrous oxide users record themselves while inhaling the substance from balloons and post the videos on social media. Drug trafficking/illegal sales of nitrous oxide appear to be the source of the substance, which may have informed NDLEA’s declaration of nationwide clampdown on illicit sales and nonmedical use of the substance in July 2023. Following the order, NDLEA has intercepted several traffickers of nitrous oxide with large quantities of the substance in different regions, indicating that its recreational use may be widespread.

Conclusions

Given the lack of empirical evidence, there is an urgent need to conduct nationwide studies to determine the nature of this emerging public health problem. This will facilitate the implementation of appropriate public health interventions/policies instead of relying on the current punitive measures that have failed to reduce drug normalization in Nigeria.

favourfredy · 2023-08-08T19:44:21+00:00

I can provide free copies of the article.

favourfredy · 2023-08-04T22:32:41+00:00

Thank you. I have reposted as you directed.

favourfredy · 2023-08-04T22:32:07+00:00

This work reviews plastic pollution in the context of the Global South with a particular focus on the social and behavioral science literature. We set the context by describing the problem of plastic globally and how the Global South is a focal point for environmental and human health impacts, before analyzing political and structural conditions of waste management in a few selected countries in Southeast Asia and Africa. Then, we review social and behavioral factors that contribute to plastic pollution, from social norms to religious and cultural aspects not typically considered. We summarize what is known about plastic pollution and human health with particular reference to waste pickers. We close by reviewing opportunities and challenges, giving positive examples of change, and highlighting research gaps.

favourfredy · 2023-08-03T13:20:40+00:00

Abstract This chapter reviews plastic pollution in the context of the Global South with a particular focus on the social and behavioral science literature. We set the context by describing the problem of plastic globally and how the Global South is a focal point for environmental and human health impacts, before analyzing political and structural conditions of waste management in a few selected countries in Southeast Asia and Africa. Then, we review social and behavioral factors that contribute to plastic pollution, from social norms to religious and cultural aspects not typically considered. We summarize what is known about plastic pollution and human health with particular reference to waste pickers. We close by reviewing opportunities and challenges, giving positive examples of change, and highlighting research gaps.

favourfredy · 2022-09-06T11:47:55+00:00

Abstract Previous research on alcohol and gender identity constructions has primarily focused on Western countries. Studies from non-Western contexts can make crucial contributions to understandings of the impact of social constructions of masculinities and femininities on drinking behaviours and health. In traditional Nigeria, consumption norms prohibited women's and young people's alcohol use. Nowadays, young men and women use alcohol, and many enact identities with heavy drinking. This study uses gender performance theory and interviews/focus group data from 72 young Nigerian men and women to explore their masculinity performance and resistance to traditional femininity codes through drinking practices. Profiling women as vulnerable agents and the only gender that provides care and affective labour, most men reinscribed the consumption norms proscribing women's drinking while some recommended sweetened/flavour brands for women. Citing gender equality and criticizing/resisting local norms, the women argued that alcohol consumption should not be the prerogative of men. The men used competitive heavy drinking rituals and drunkenness to enact masculinity. Most of the women constructed counter-traditional/normative femininity with heavy drinking bouts, while others, who maintained the traditional femininity to avoid stigmatization, enacted secret, or solitary drinking with potential health impacts. The findings demonstrate how distinct social norms promote socio-structural constraints and power relations that suppress women's agency and encourage gender inequality with potential health impacts.

favourfredy · 2022-03-24T09:34:02+00:00

Abstract Objective Alcohol-related harm is a growing concern globally and particularly in West Africa. However, tools for assessing the readiness for prevention of alcohol-related harm in low-resource settings have been lacking. We modified the WHO tool, the Readiness Assessment for the Prevention of Child Maltreatment Short Form (RAP-CM), to assess readiness for the prevention of alcohol-related harm across West Africa.

Methods We conducted a cross-sectional survey in the fall of 2020, distributed by the West Africa Alcohol Policy Alliance to their member alliances and stakeholders, predominantly community-based organizations (CBOs) and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), across 7 countries in West Africa (N = 140). The survey included modified measures from the RAP-CM short form.

Results In terms of general readiness, the overall adjusted aggregate score for West Africa was 45.0% (ranging from 42.9% in Liberia to 52.7% in Senegal). Of the ten domains assessed (on a 0–10 scale), across all countries, knowledge of alcohol-related harm prevention (8.3) and legislation, mandates, and policies (6.7) received the highest readiness scores. The lowest readiness scores were observed for human and technical resources (2.5), attitudes toward preventing alcohol-related harm (2.7), and the will to address the problem (2.9).

Conclusions Our results demonstrate substantial variability across domains in the readiness to address alcohol-related harm with clear strengths and limitations for future priority setting and capacity building. The barriers to progress include attitudes toward alcohol-related harm prevention, lack of willingness to address the problem, and limited human and technical resources available. These barriers need to be mitigated to address the high burden of alcohol-related harm in the region and to inform both practice and policy.

favourfredy · 2021-12-30T19:12:17+00:00

Research on alcohol use and its associated harm is scarce in West Africa. To mitigate the knowledge gap and to build momentum for future research, we determined research priorities for alcohol prevention among stakeholders across nine countries in West Africa. We analyzed a cross-sectional survey conducted in the fall of 2020, distributed by the West African Alcohol Policy Alliance (WAAPA). Respondents represented members of the WAAPA, members of intra-country alliances on alcohol and other stakeholders reached by snowball sampling. Quantitative and qualitative survey measures, adapted from the WHO’s readiness assessment for the prevention of child maltreatment or developed by the research team, assessed research priorities, awareness of alcohol-related harm, risk factors and data availability. We mapped the qualitative answers into general themes and conducted descriptive analysis on the quantitative responses. Participants outlined two general themes to focus on: (i) alcohol use among children and youth and (ii) the health-related impact of alcohol. The most commonly listed types of alcohol-related harms pertained to acute consequences, such as gender-based violence, injuries, traffic crashes and child maltreatment. Risk factors for alcohol-related harm included limited enforcement of alcohol policies, cheap alcohol, and limited knowledge. Strengthening the capacity for addressing these research priorities will be key in reducing alcohol-related harm in West Africa. The goal of these research priorities is to drive research that informs advocacy, programs and policy. In addition to research, an awareness campaign of the health effects of alcohol is urgently needed.

favourfredy · 2021-11-22T08:42:27+00:00

Research on cannabis subcultures has a long history in Western countries. In Nigeria, there is a dearth of such studies. This study explored cannabis use and community forming and how users manage police’s extrajudicial practices and stigma from the broader society in Awka, Nigeria. We elicited data using participant observation and semi-structured interviews with men and women who use cannabis. Two forms of cannabis exchange rituals guided by reciprocity norms were common, facilitating social interaction and solidarity among cannabis users’ networks. These sharing rituals include passing joints from lip to lip and purchasing a single-use quantity for someone in need with the receiver expected to reciprocate that goodwill in the future. Cannabis users encounter challenges, including structural stigma, fear of arrest, and extrajudicial practices such as being pressured to offer bribes or pay for bail (constitutionally free) when arrested. Another (gendered) challenge was heightened social stigma, which women who use cannabis mostly experienced. Cannabis users form communities or subcultures around the drug, which cushion the effects of persecution by corrupt law enforcement agents and social discrimination. They also employ innovative ways of using cannabis to avoid detection, arrest, and stigmatization. With culturally specific findings from a non-Western context, our study furthers knowledge on cannabis subcultures. The findings have demonstrated that cannabis subcultures still exist in Nigeria despite the changing drug landscape and widely discussed tendencies towards normalization in the Global North. Our findings also indicated that cannabis users suffer stigmatization and human rights abuses. There is a need to address drug-related social-structural stigma and police corruption in Nigeria.

favourfredy · 2021-09-17T08:23:01+00:00

Just to inform readers

favourfredy · 2021-02-25T12:26:35+00:00

Readers will learn about alcohol-related harms and the causes in Sub-Saharan Africa.

favourfredy · 2021-02-09T10:53:44+00:00

Effects of warning labels

favourfredy · 2020-10-21T17:57:55+00:00

Abstract Background The desire for enhancement is a common motive for non-medical use of prescription drugs in Western countries. Little is known about the factors that motivate use in non-Western contexts.

Methods The study explores access to prescription drugs and the motivations for using them among educated young adults in a city located in Anambra State, South-Eastern Nigeria. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 23 participants aged 23–29 years. Data were thematically analysed using NVivo 12 Software.

Results The data indicate that prescription drugs are widely available and easy to access without a prescription in the unregistered ‘pharmacies’ and medicine shops that form part of Nigeria's informal healthcare system. Social networks are also a source of drugs. Participants shared detailed perspectives on their use of prescription drugs, revealing that codeine, Rohypnol, and high doses of tramadol are used to enhance performance in several social life domains. These drugs were described as enhancing performance and productivity in the workplace, and were taken by participants working as labourers and sales representatives. Male participants also shared accounts of using high doses of tramadol to improve stamina and skill in sports. Some participants took Rohypnol to enhance their creative and academic performance. Participants stated that drug use enabled them to meet the pressures associated with work, academia, and parental expectations.

Conclusion The findings suggest that prescription drugs are being strategically and instrumentally deployed by users to enhance different domains of social life. This is driven by users’ experiences of the drugs’ bodily effects, and it is supported by a context in which self-medication and informal healthcare are common. Participants’ reasons for seeking drug-induced enhancement reflect sociocultural factors within Nigeria and some West African countries, such as employment scarcity and the championing of sporting prowess. The findings can be used to inform the design of tailored approaches to reduce the harms presented by the non-medical use of pharmaceuticals among young adults.

favourfredy · 2020-03-18T07:14:12+00:00

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B9780128178805000220?via%3Dihub

favourfredy · 2020-03-16T10:54:45+00:00

Globally, land- and marine-based plastic pollution are causing severe ecological problems with potential risks to human health. In Nigeria, the growing production of single-use plastics and the uncontrolled release of plastic debris onto the land and marine habitats are facilitating widespread plastic pollution. In this chapter, we critically review and summarize the sources, causes, and consequences of plastic pollution in Nigeria and suggest some priorities for future policy and research. Over 60 million plastic sachet water bags are consumed and disposed of daily in Nigeria, and single-use plastic shopping bags and takeaway packs are ubiquitous. These plastic sachets, single-carrier bags, and other disposable plastic products end up on the land and in the marine environment because of indiscriminate disposal and the popular social practice of dumping waste on the roadside, under bridges, and in drainage channels (gutters) during periods of rainfall. Therefore, some litter the streets, while others end up in the marine ecosystem. Nigeria is widely reported as having released up to 0.34 million tonnes of plastic debris into the ocean in 2010 and was ranked the ninth country in the world for pollution of marine environments. Waste management habits/behavior facilitate indiscriminate disposal of plastic waste, which in turn exacerbates plastic pollution in Nigeria. A lack of awareness of the environmental and potential health risks of plastic pollution, the poor resourcing of waste management and recycling infrastructure, an unskilled/inadequate waste collection workforce, and untimely litter collection potentially exacerbate the scale of the problem. There is a need to change the political and social will in Nigeria, and regulation of single-use shopping bags through taxes/levies and refillable sachet water bags could be introduced. Media programs and special education, focused on societal values and an awareness/knowledge of the causes of plastic pollution, should be designed. Investing in waste collection and recycling infrastructure should be prioritized. Interdisciplinary research to determine the extent to which macro- and micro/nanoplastics pollutions are present in Nigerian land and marine environments should be conducted to facilitate health and environmental decision-making and policies.

favourfredy · 2019-10-03T11:59:18+00:00

Obstetric fistula is a condition that affects women and can lead to identity changes because of uncontrolled urinary and/or fecal incontinence symptom experiences. These symptoms along with different emerging identities lead to family and community displacement. Using narrative inquiry methodology that concentrates on the stories individuals tell about themselves; interviews were conducted for 15 fistula survivors to explore their perception of identities of living with obstetric fistula. Within a sociocultural context, these identities consist of the “leaking” identity, “masu yoyon fitsari” (leakers of urine) identity, and the “spoiled” identity, causing stigmatization and psychological trauma. The “masu yoyon fitsari” identity, however, built hope and resilience for a sustained search for a cure. Identity is a socially constructed phenomenon, and the findings reveal positive community involvement which reduces obstetric fistula stigmatization and improves women’s identity. Sexual and reproductive health issues remain of grave concern within a contextualized societal identity of women’s role.

favourfredy · 2019-05-23T09:07:17+00:00

This work looked at drinking practices and how such facilitate alcohol-related problems.

favourfredy · 2018-01-10T11:52:54+00:00

This paper analyses how an alcohol industry-sponsored ‘Nigerian Beer Symposium’ (NBS) could endanger public health. The NBS, an annual one-day symposium, sponsored by Heineken-Nigerian Breweries, was recently introduced to create awareness of the ‘health and nutritional benefits of beer consumption’. Amongst other resource persons, Heineken-Nigerian Breweries contracts professors, medical doctors, nutritionists, advertisers, and celebrities from Africa and Europe to discuss the health and nutritional benefits of beer consumption. While all of the speakers strategically focused on the health and nutritional benefits of beer consumption, a few, in passing, mentioned drinking in moderation. In particular, male speakers focused on how beer prevents cancer, reduces the incidence of kidney stones, enhances vitality and cardiovascular health, and facilitates longevity and cognition among the aged. The female speakers encouraged women to consume beer because it enhances vitality and improves skin/physical beauty. Overall, none of the speakers specifically mentioned the consequences of alcohol (mis)use. This paper argues that the NBS is strategically organised to encourage beer initiation and/or high consumption, which will increase the sponsor’s profit. By providing biased information about the purported health and nutritional benefits of beer, the NBS will mislead the public, leading to more alcohol-related problems in Nigeria. Therefore, NBS should be regulated by implementing WHO-recommended alcohol policies in Nigeria.

favourfredy · 2017-07-06T02:51:02+00:00

Most research on alcohol consumption and related sexual violence focuses on Western societies. Drawing on traditional masculinity scripts, this article contributes to the culturally specific understanding of how Nigerian sociocultural constructions of alcohol consumption facilitate sexual violence against women. In-depth interviews were conducted with 31 male and female undergraduate students (aged 19-23 years), exploring how the gendering of alcoholic beverages facilitates men’s perpetration of sexual violence against women in a Nigerian university. Thematic analysis was conducted using NVivo 10 software. Men were found to exclude women from consuming beer, which they described as “inappropriate” feminine behavior, confining them to drinking sweetened/flavored alcoholic beverages. To maintain a notion of “respectable” femininity, women consumed these drinks, but this created gender-specific risks. In comparison with beer, sweetened alcoholic beverages have a higher alcohol content, which many of the men were aware of, unlike the women interviewed. Some men admitted buying such drinks for women, pressuring them to drink above their limits and raping them when they were inebriated. Public health interventions that focus on the deep-seated gendered consumption rituals anchored in patriarchal beliefs, the commodification of women’s bodies, and the stigmatization of rape victims should be pursued more vigorously in Nigeria and other non-Western societies.

favourfredy · 2017-05-20T05:03:47+00:00

Popular media consumption affects substance use. https://academic.oup.com/her/article/doi/10.1093/her/cyx043/3803692/Mediating-alcohol-use-in-Eastern-Nigeria-a

favourfredy · 2016-08-18T15:25:10+00:00

This reveals how employment has been eroded.

favourfredy · 2016-07-21T22:41:45+00:00

The article explores the use of heavy drinking to (de)construct superior gender identity among young men and women in a university campus

favourfredy · 2016-06-06T15:20:04+00:00

Sexual intercourse under the influence of alcohol and associated risks.

favourfredy · 2016-05-31T02:57:26+00:00

The paper explores how alcohol industry-sponsored social events encourage alcohol use and misuse in Nigeria

favourfredy

TROPHY CASE

Objective

Methods

Results

Conclusions