On May 20, the first data from the 2024 European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs (ESPAD) were presented. The study, carried out in collaboration with the European Union Drugs Agency (EUDA) and coordinated by the Italian National Research Council, is based on a 2024 survey in 37 European countries, including 25 EU Member States.
This is the eighth data-collection wave conducted by the ESPAD project since 1995. A total of 113 882 students (aged 15–16-years) participated in this latest survey round, responding to an anonymous questionnaire.
This edition marks 30 years of monitoring adolescent risky behaviours across Europe. As adolescent behaviours evolve, ESPAD’s long-term monitoring continues to provide crucial insights to guide prevention and policy efforts, ensuring responses remain effective and relevant.
The 2024 ESPAD findings relate to students’ experience of, and perceptions about, a variety of substances, including: tobacco, alcohol, illicit drugs, inhalants, pharmaceuticals and new psychoactive substances. Social media use, gaming and gambling are also covered.
In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and amid ongoing conflicts in Europe and the Middle East, ESPAD has also strengthened its focus on adolescent mental well-being. This survey round included a new focus on mental well-being and prevention activities, recognising the growing importance of these factors in shaping adolescent health outcomes.
ESPAD highlights:
- Teenage drinking and cigarette smoking decline, but e-cigarette use on the rise.
- Illicit drug use falls, but concerns over non-medical use of pharmaceutical drugs.
- Rise in online and risky gambling behaviour.
- Surge in gaming, particularly among girls.
- Mental health: geographical and gender differences.
- Almost three-quarters of students took part in prevention programmes.
A more comprehensive report ESPAD 2024 will be published in October 2025.
Key findings from the ESPAD 2024