Prevalence of driving and alcohol consumption of students in the Ongkarak secondary school

Abstract

Traffic accidents are the major cause of injuries and deaths in Thailand. Investigating risk factors can assist planning and prevention of these accidents. Questionnaires were answered by secondary school students in Ongkharak School. From 88 students, there were 50 girls (56.82%) and 38 boys (43.18%). The age ranged from 12 to 15 years with a mean age of 14.17 years. A history of driving motor vehicles was observed in 73.9% of all students, of which 78.5% were motorcyclists and 20% were car drivers. Alcohol consumption was found in 34.1% of all students. The mean age of drinkers was 14.53 years. and the majority of students (81.5%) were drinking only in special occasions. Of all alcohol consumers, 66.7%, 16.7% and 13.3% drank with friends, seniors and relatives, respectively. There were only 10% of students who were driving or motorcycling after drinking alcohol.