Substance use in women: Current status and future directions.
Alcohol and substance use, until recently, were believed to be a predominantly male phenomenon. Only in the last few decades, attention has shifted to female drug use and its repercussions in women. As the numbers of female drug users continue to rise, studies attempt to understand gender-specific etiological factors, phenomenology, course and outcome, and issues related to treatment with the aim to develop more effective treatment programs. Research has primarily focused on alcohol and tobacco in women, and most of the literature is from the Western countries with data from developing countries like India being sparse. This review highlights the issues pertinent to alcohol and substance use in women with a special focus to the situation in India.
Department of Psychiatry and National Drug Dependence Treatment Centre, AIIMS, New Delhi, India.
Rakesh
R
Lal
Department of Psychiatry and National Drug Dependence Treatment Centre, AIIMS, New Delhi, India.
Koushik Sinha
KS
Deb
Centre for Addiction Medicine, NIMHANS, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India.
Swati
S
Kedia
Alcohol; addiction; drug abuse; gender; substance use disorders; women