Drug Users More Likely to Report Gay Sex in College
by GayHealth Staff

Drug users on campus were more likely than non-users to report homosexual activity in 1999 compared with previous years, according to new research.

Anonymous questionnaires were given to students at a single college in New England in 1969, 1978, 1989 and in 1999. Nearly 800 students were surveyed in 1999. While drug use has declined on campus over the years, researchers say the differences between users and non-users have become more magnified.

The study, led by Dr. Harrison G. Pope, Jr., of Harvard Medical School in Massachusetts, found that in addition to having more gay and lesbian sex, users didn't do as well as non-users academically and they spent less time participating in extracurricular activities in 1999.

The differences between users and non-users that have remained consistent over the years include a greater number of psychiatrist visits and higher levels of heterosexual activity reported by users.

The greatest drug use was reported in 1978, with the exception of the use of ecstasy. In the years following, drug use steadily declined including the use of cocaine and LSD. Meanwhile, the use of ecstasy has increased over the years, and it is now one of the most commonly used drugs, second only to marijuana.

Findings were published in the September issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry.

Updated: Tuesday, 2 October 2001