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Impact of Alcohol-Mixing Risk Education on Safe Alcohol-Use Knowledge among Young Adults in Nigeria

Abstract

Alcohol use among young adults is an important public health concern in Nigeria, particularly where alcoholic beverages may be consumed in combination with energy drinks, medications, other psychoactive substances, or different types of alcoholic beverages. Alcohol mixing may increase the risk of excessive alcohol consumption, impaired judgment, dehydration, adverse drug interactions, alcohol poisoning, injuries, and other health and social consequences. Young adults may engage in alcohol mixing because of peer influence, social activities, misconceptions about its effects, attempts to alter the taste or perceived strength of alcoholic beverages, or limited awareness of the risks associated with combining alcohol with other substances. Alcohol-mixing risk education provides an opportunity to improve knowledge of unsafe combinations, potential health consequences, responsible alcohol-use practices, and situations requiring professional assistance. Against this background, this study investigates the impact of alcohol-mixing risk education on safe alcohol-use knowledge among young adults in Nigeria. The study will be anchored on the Health Belief Model, Theory of Planned Behavior, and Social Cognitive Theory. The Health Belief Model explains how young adults' perceptions of susceptibility to alcohol-related harm, perceived severity, perceived benefits of safer alcohol-use practices, perceived barriers, and cues to action may influence their knowledge and health-related decisions. The Theory of Planned Behavior emphasizes attitudes toward alcohol use, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control, and behavioural intentions in shaping alcohol-related practices. Social Cognitive Theory emphasizes observational learning, peer influence, self-efficacy, reinforcement, and environmental factors in developing knowledge and behaviours related to alcohol use. Collectively, these theoretical perspectives provide a suitable framework for explaining how alcohol-mixing risk education may influence safe alcohol-use knowledge among young adults in Nigeria. The study will adopt a quantitative quasi-experimental or analytical cross-sectional research design. The study population will comprise young adults aged 18–35 years residing in selected urban, semi-urban, and rural communities across Nigeria. A multistage sampling technique will be used to select geopolitical zones, states, local government areas, communities, universities, workplaces, and eligible young adults. Alcohol-mixing risk education will be assessed using indicators such as exposure to educational sessions, frequency and duration of education, knowledge of risks associated with combining alcohol with energy drinks, medications, psychoactive substances, or multiple alcoholic beverages, awareness of alcohol poisoning, impaired judgment, dehydration, injury risks, potential drug-alcohol interactions, responsible alcohol-use principles, standard drink concepts, recognition of risky drinking patterns, and appropriate help-seeking. Safe alcohol-use knowledge will be assessed using indicators such as understanding the risks of excessive alcohol consumption, awareness of unsafe alcohol combinations, recognition of alcohol-medication interactions, knowledge of alcohol poisoning warning signs, understanding of responsible drinking practices, awareness of situations in which alcohol should be avoided, recognition of impaired judgment and injury risks, understanding the importance of avoiding driving after alcohol consumption, and knowledge of appropriate healthcare or support services. Data will be collected using structured questionnaires, standardized alcohol-risk knowledge assessment tools, scenario-based questions involving alcohol combinations, and relevant community or university health programme records where available. Descriptive statistics will be used to summarize participants' characteristics, alcohol-use patterns, sources of alcohol-related information, exposure to risk education, and levels of safe alcohol-use knowledge. Inferential statistical techniques, including chi-square tests, t-tests, correlation analysis, and logistic or multiple regression analysis where appropriate, will be used to determine the impact of alcohol-mixing risk education on safe alcohol-use knowledge. Where a quasi-experimental design is adopted, knowledge scores before and after the educational intervention may be compared with those of a comparison group to determine changes associated with the intervention. Diagnostic tests will also be conducted to assess the reliability, validity, and robustness of the findings. The study is expected to find that alcohol-mixing risk education has a significant positive impact on safe alcohol-use knowledge among young adults in Nigeria. Young adults exposed to structured and evidence-based alcohol-mixing education are expected to demonstrate greater knowledge of alcohol-related risks than those without comparable exposure. Education may improve understanding of the potential dangers of combining alcohol with energy drinks, medications, other psychoactive substances, or additional alcoholic beverages. It may also improve recognition of alcohol poisoning, impaired judgment, dehydration, injury risks, and potentially harmful interactions between alcohol and medicines. Practical scenario-based education may help young adults identify risky situations, understand when alcohol should be avoided, and recognize the importance of seeking appropriate assistance when serious alcohol-related symptoms occur. However, peer influence, social norms, cultural acceptance of alcohol consumption, alcohol marketing, misinformation, misconceptions about alcohol mixing, and limited access to reliable health information may reduce the effectiveness of education alone. The study therefore expects accessible, evidence-based, culturally appropriate, and sustained alcohol-mixing risk education to contribute significantly to improved safe alcohol-use knowledge among young adults in Nigeria. The study is expected to contribute to the literature on alcohol use, alcohol-mixing risks, substance-use prevention, young-adult health, health education, alcohol-related harm reduction, medication safety, injury prevention, and public health in Nigeria. The findings will provide useful information to the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Federal Ministry of Education, National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, universities, healthcare professionals, public health practitioners, youth-health organizations, substance-use prevention programmes, development partners, and policymakers regarding strategies for reducing alcohol-related harm among young adults. The study will also provide evidence-based recommendations for integrating alcohol-mixing risk education into university and community health programmes, strengthening public awareness of unsafe alcohol combinations, improving knowledge of alcohol-medication interactions, promoting responsible alcohol-use practices, strengthening access to counselling and support services, and developing culturally appropriate health communication strategies for preventing alcohol-related harm among young adults across Nigeria.

Keywords: Alcohol-mixing risk education, safe alcohol-use knowledge, alcohol use, young adults, alcohol-related harm, substance-use prevention, medication safety, health education, alcohol poisoning, Nigeria, public health.