This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of the use and abuse of psychoactive substances among students and its relationship to adverse experiences during childhood and adolescence. This exploratory and observational, research was based on the self-report. The sample consisted of 280 college students. The reported lifetime prevalence of psychoactive substance use was 72.1%. The three most commonly used psychoactive substances in the last year were alcohol (66.4%), marijuana (25.0%) and tobacco (32.1%). Peer drug abuse was reported in 33.9% of the students. The physical and psychological maltreatment were the most frequently reported categories. Students who reported having peers who abuse psychoactive substances have a 7-fold increased likelihood to abusing drugs than other respondents. There were no statistically significant associations (<0.005) between maltreatment self-reported in any of its categories and the use or abuse.
Maltreatment; Drugs use and abuse; University students