Ximena Goldberg, a reporter for the national newspaper El País, deep dives into the causes of alcohol and substance use. Looking at the necessity of gathering information to have a broad view of the state of health in different population.

She asks many interesting questions and acknowledges the fact that Alcohol and drug use are being used to reduce tension, typical of the situation of high levels of stress. Knowing that even though alcohol and substances can temporarily provide tension relief in the long run it will leave the user in a poorer state than before, with the risk of also having negative effect on the lives of others.

The alternative Ximena points out are methods like Planet Youth has been promoting, with the Icelandic prevention model which she calls the “best example of integrating science and society …”. Iceland initiated a national program aimed at reducing the factors that increase the risk of consumption and managed to cut the use among its young people by half.

These methods are not about avoiding tension and stress, but about providing the support to find alternative methods to manage it. Activities that range from encouraging greater parental monitoring of the activities of young people to increasing access to extracurricular activities, including sport and artistic disciplines.