Defining a public health approach to substance use: insights from a systematic scoping review and conceptual framework development approach.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Psychoactive substance use represents a significant global public health challenge, leading to diverse health, social, and environmental harms. Traditional punitive and commercial approaches have faced criticism for potentially worsening these harms and overlooking potential benefits. Consequently, there is an increasing global call for a comprehensive public health approach to address psychoactive substances, focusing on both supply and demand reduction. However, the core components of a public health approach remain unclear. We aimed to conceptualize a public health approach to psychoactive substances and describe its core values, goals, and activities.

Methods

We used a two-step process to develop a coherent and comprehensive conceptual framework. First we cond

SUBMITTER: Mathias H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12754855 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature