Alcohol, tobacco and psychotropic drugs in seniors. The uses of legal psychoactive substances between the ages of 60 and 75

Among 60-75 year olds (the seniors), the use of alcohol is more of a generation matter: for these individuals, alcohol is a product of everyday consumption, often part of the day's meals. The use of psychotropic drugs is more a matter of age, as part of medical treatment following health problems. 

In addition, the health consequences of use of these legal drugs are important and more serious than those for illicit drugs: in France, alcohol and tobacco are the cause of nearly 100 000 premature deaths each year, while consumption of drugs in general, and psychotropic drugs in particular, is one of the highest in the world.

After a description of the levels of use of these substances for the whole adult range (18-75 year olds), the study will then focus on the 60-75 year olds, grouping them into different use profiles, then examining their state of health. The seniors, often neglected in favour of adolescents and young adults, are in fact very concberned by these levels of use and their consequences because of their greater vulnerability and the fact that their declared use is often a continuation of a former habit. 

The results are from the processing by OFDT of a general population survey, the Baromètre Santé 2000, carried out by the French Board for Health Education (CFES), under the scientific supervision of P. Guilbert and F. Baudier.