Nikotinkonsum im Kinder- und Jugendalter – Grundlagen und Überlegungen zum Umgang in kinder- und jugendpsychiatrischen Settings

Among mentally ill young people, the rate of nicotine consumptionremains high despite an overall decline in numbers. Within the group ofyoung people with mental illness the proportion is 38% and in a population receiving child and adolescent psychiatric care the proportion of consumers is as high as 63%. Thelegal ban on tobacco products for young people therefore presents staff in child andadolescent psychiatric institutions with the ongoing challenge ofenforcing rules and prohibitions, while at the same time perceivingperceive consumption as an addiction. In this paper we will discussthe specifics of the substance nicotine, current forms of consumption and epidemiology, but above all we will consider how to deal withnicotine consumption by underage patients in the often highly complex situations ofpsychiatric and acute psychiatric settings.