[Use of medicines and lifestyles among Italian adolescents]

To determine the prevalence, among adolescents, of medicine use for headache, stomachache, difficulties in getting to sleep and nervousness, and to analyse its association with common lifestyles.

Data were taken from the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC), a transnational study coordinated by the WHO. The data are collected through a self-administered questionnaire for investigating health and health behaviours.

80 middle schools and 84 high schools were randomly selected from all Italian public and private schools. The questionnaire was filled out by a representative sample of 2667 (50.1% males) 13- and 15- year-old Italian students.

Medicine use for headache, stomachache, difficulties in getting to sleep and nervousness, socio-economic status, physical fitness, breakfast, smoking and drunkenness.

Females are more likely than boys to use medicines for headache (41.2% vs 30%) and stomachache (29%vs 16.2%), but there are no gender differences regarding medicines for difficulties in getting to sleep and nervousness, which are used less frequently. The prevalence of the use of medicines does not increase with age. The related behaviours are: for headache, breakfast, smoking and drunkenness; for stomachache, physical fitness, breakfast and smoking; for difficulties in getting to sleep and nervousness, drunkenness.

The extensive use of medicines in adolescence and its association with some lifestyles suggest the importance to develop education programmes for adolescents.