Prevalence and correlates of alcohol use and risky drinking among undergraduate students in Johannesburg, South Africa: a cross-sectional study

Background Alcohol use and risky drinking are significant public health problem globally. Young people, including university students, are among the most affected populations. We conducted the study to determine the prevalence and correlates of alcohol use and risky drinking among undergraduate students in the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional study using an anonymous, self-administered online survey in REDCap. The survey questionnaire consisted of socio demographic, and alcohol use questions using the risky drinking identification screening tool (AUDIT-C). We performed descriptive statistics, bivariate and multivariable logistic regression to determine factors associated with alcohol use and risky drinking. The p-value of < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results The response rate was 15.7%. Most participants were female (69.6%) and majority of the participants were White (38.1%). The prevalence of lifetime use of alcohol was 79.1%, and among the lifetime users; 70.2% reported alcohol use in the last 12-months, 37.1% reported alcohol use in the last 30 days. The prevalence of risky drinking was 54.8% among lifetime drinkers. Factors significantly associated with current alcohol use were siblings alcohol use (aOR = 1.79, 95% CI: 1.02–3.15) and parents alcohol use (aOR = 2.58, 95% CI: 1.39–4.80), white race (aOR = 5.70, 95% CI: 3.12–10.41), and always or daily exposure to alcohol marketing in the media (aOR = 3.31, 95% CI: 1.07–10.24). Factors associated with risky drinking were: Indian/Asian race (aOR = 2.82, 95% CI: 1.09–7.31), White race (aOR = 2.15, 95% CI: 1.14–4.04), and exposure to alcohol marketing in the media as follows, most of the time (aOR = 3.42, 95% CI: 1.29–9.04) and Always/daily exposure (aOR = 3.31, 95% CI: 1.07–10.24). Conclusion The reported alcohol use and risky drinking were common amongst undergraduate students at Wits university. There is an urgent need to design, pilot and adapt targeted interventions for this population group.