Board Games and Reading Linked to Lower Substance Use in Czech Teens

Adolescents who spend their free time reading or playing board and card games report notably lower rates of smoking, vaping, drinking, and drunkenness, while those who hang out with friends, visit shopping centres, or nap during the day report higher rates, according to a new analysis of more than 14,500 Czech schoolchildren. The study, led by Petra Potmesilova of Palacký University Olomouc and published in the journal Frontiers in Education, drew on the 2022 Czech Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) survey. They then tested how each activity related to four separate outcomes measured over the previous 30 days: cigarette smoking, e-cigarette use, alcohol consumption, and drunkenness.

The team used survey-adjusted multivariable logistic regression models, meaning the estimates account for the complex sampling design of the HBSC survey. Each model adjusted for gender, school grade, and—crucially—for participation in all of the other leisure activities. The headline result is heterogeneity.

Associations between leisure and substance use were not uniform but varied substantially from one activity to another, and sometimes from one substance to another. Two activities, however, stood out for their consistency: regular reading and playing board or card games were associated with lower odds of all four substance-use outcomes, a pattern that held across smoking, e-cigarette use, alcohol consumption, and drunkenness alike. At the opposite end of the spectrum, three activities showed consistently elevated odds.

Hanging out with friends, visiting shopping centres, and daytime sleeping were each associated with higher odds of the substance-use outcomes. Three further activities produced mixed results. Playing a musical instrument, engaging in creative or craft activities, and relaxing or doing nothing showed associations that were less consistent across the four outcomes, sometimes aligning with lower odds for one substance and not for another.

The authors argue that these findings carry a methodological warning for the field. Broad leisure categories—"screen time," "sports," "socialising"—may obscure meaningful differences between the individual activities nested within them. It is important to read the results as associations, not causes.

The data come from a single cross-sectional survey wave, so adolescents were asked about their activities and their substance use at the same point in time. The study also covers Czech adolescents aged 11 to 15 in 2022, and patterns may differ in other countries, age groups, or post-pandemic periods. If the goal is to understand which leisure contexts travel with lower substance use, the evidence suggests the answer depends on the specific activity, not on leisure in general.

The authors call for further activity-specific investigation of adolescent leisure contexts, arguing that the differences between reading a book at home and wandering a shopping centre with friends are too large to be averaged away by a single composite variable.

Subject of Research: Associations between specific leisure activities and substance use among Czech adolescents

Article Title: Specific leisure activities and adolescent substance use: an activity-specific analysis of Czech adolescents

Article References: Potmesilova, P., Badura, P., Potmesil, M., Žídková, R., & Sarnikova, G. (2026). Specific Leisure Activities and Adolescent Substance Use: An Activity-Specific Analysis of Czech Adolescents. Frontiers in Education, 11, 1959606. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2026.1959606

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.3389/feduc.2026.1959606

Keywords: adolescent substance use, leisure activities, HBSC study, cigarette smoking, e-cigarette use, alcohol consumption, drunkenness, Czech adolescents, cross-sectional study, logistic regression, reading, board games