As the world ushered into an era of globalisation, the way people lived transformed forever. The boons of
modernisation in the past few years have also brought along with them the banes of fast paced lifestyles, afflicting the
generation of the globalisation the most. Instances of stress and clinical depression in younger population are coming to the
fore more than ever before and the children are increasingly resorting to drug use as a means of busting their stress. So much
so that substance use among children and adolescents has become a public health concern in several parts of the world. India
has a rich demographic dividend, however, according to a prevalence study, 13.1% of the people involved in substance abuse
in India are below 20 years of age and this number is increasing at an alarming rate. The present paper aims to provide an
overview of the situation of substance abuse among teenagers in India and how sports can be best used to support approaches
to substance abuse prevention. The study observed that sports for young people can lead to an improved self-esteem, a better
ability to handle stress, increased academic performance and better relationships with family and all these potential benefits
have been shown to be protective factors for substance abuse. It was concluded that sports need to be used to keep the young
away from drugs and help them canalise their energies for personal and economic growth |
