Self-medication among higher education students: prevalence, risk factors, and health information-seeking behaviours.

Authors

Abdul Sami, Rashid Tahir, Muhammad Tariq Bakhshi, Muhammad Ahsan Javed, Dilber Uzun Ozsahin, Yasir Waheed

Published in

BMC public health. Volume 26. Issue 1. Aug 01, 2026. Epub Aug 01, 2026.

Abstract

The WHO estimates that more than two-thirds of university students engage in this practice. This study aims to determine the prevalence, knowledge, attitudes, and practices related to self-medication, along with the determinants that influence these behaviors, among higher education students in Pakistan.
A total of 1346 students participated in a cross-sectional multicenter study from across Pakistan. The data was collected using a structured 28-item questionnaire (Cronbach's α value: 0.85 to 0.89), using a convenience sampling technique.
The overall prevalence of self-medication was 59.88% among the higher education students. Self-medication was more prevalent among female students, but it was not statistically significant in AOR (64.18%, COR = 1.25, 95% CI 1.05-1.70, p = 0.008, AOR = 1.07, 95% CI 0.91-1.25, p = 0.061). Additionally, the prevalence of self-medication was higher among students aged > 21 (63.79%, COR = 1.46, 95% CI 1.20-1.98, p = 0.001, AOR = 1.18, 95% CI 1.03-1.40, p = 0.011). The health sciences students possessed a higher level of self-medication-related knowledge (M: 4.39, p < 0.001), but they demonstrated poorer self-medication practices (M: 3.53, p = 0.004) compared to non-health sciences students. Participants reported using a range of pharmacological agents for self-medication, including antibiotics (29.00%), multi-vitamins (22.00%), anti-allergics (18.00%), cold remedies (13.00%), eye drops (8.00%), nose sprays (6.00%), steroids (2.00%), and others (2.00%). Students also reported using artificial intelligence (AI), social media, and internet resources as sources for students to get knowledge regarding self-medication (13.00%), to seek advice before starting medication (9.14%), and get guidance in case of medication-related adverse effects (5.00%). Most of the participants (64.00%) reported storing 1 or more boxes of medication in their house for future use.
The prevalence of self-medication was high among higher education students in our study. Additionally, the students are using on digital health resources for self-medication-related practices. Our study highlights the trends in self-medication among higher education students, guiding public health policymakers regarding self-medication interventions.

PMID:
42947121
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 28 Oct 2026.

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