ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Psychiatry
Sec. Addictive Disorders
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1591658
PolDrugs 2025: Results of the Third Edition of the Nationwide Study on Psychoactive Substance Use in the Context of Psychiatry and Harm Reduction
Provisionally accepted- Department of Psychiatry, Medical University of Silesia, Tarnowskie Góry, Poland
Select one of your emails
You have multiple emails registered with Frontiers:
Notify me on publication
Please enter your email address:
If you already have an account, please login
You don't have a Frontiers account ? You can register here
PolDrugs is a biennial epidemiological study aimed at analyzing patterns of mostly illicit psychoactive substance use in Poland in the context of psychiatry and harm reduction. This survey was held for the third time, and its results were compared to the last two editions.The survey was conducted as an online survey with 37 closed-ended single-choice questions and 3 multiple-choice questions. Respondents were recruited through outreach on social media platforms, primarily Facebook and Instagram, in drug-related groups. Recruitment efforts were supported by activists and advocacy groups who promoted the questionnaire through their own social media networks.Respondents were recruited via social media. The sample consisted of 2447 people between the ages of 13 and 63. Statistical analysis included descriptive statistics only.The study population (mean age 27 years) was predominantly male and urban. Marijuana was the most common substance used after alcohol, caffeine, and nicotine, though overall consumption was infrequent (35.6% reporting use once every few months or less) and mainly occurred in social settings (50.2%) or at home (52.3%). Notably, 83.6% never tested substance composition, and 51.4% relied on visual estimation for dosing. Sixty percent had neglected daily responsibilities, while 16.8% faced legal issues. Although 70.7% had not sought medical help, nearly half had seen a psychiatrist (primarily for depression), with 41.1% of these having attempted suicide and 70.5% using illicit substances before their initial consultation. Only 40% consistently disclosed their substance use to a physician.-sformatowano: Angielski (Zjednoczone Królestwo)Stimulant use and subsequent medical consultations-particularly for mephedrone derivatives-are rising, warranting further investigation. The proportion of respondents who use psychoactive substances alone is increasing, now exceeding 25%. Psychedelic use is declining, possibly due to reduced mainstream media attention. The observation also shows a growing acceptance of psychiatric care in Polish society.
Keywords: drugs, PolDrugs, Psychoactive substances, psilocybin, DMT, Marihuana, MDMA, Psychiatry
Received: 11 Mar 2025; Accepted: 03 Jun 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Marek, Domek-Gumprecht, Macionga, Szafoni and Więckiewicz. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Gniewko Więckiewicz, Department of Psychiatry, Medical University of Silesia, Tarnowskie Góry, Poland
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.