Call 888-647-0579 to speak with an alcohol or drug abuse counselor.

Who Answers?

UK top of European cocaine league

The UK has recorded the highest number of cocaine users in the EU for the fifth year running, a report suggests.

Annual figures from the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction showed that 7.7% of Britons aged 15-64 had taken cocaine.

The Tories accused the government of failing an “entire generation” of young people with its drugs policies.

The Home Office said the statistics and other figures suggested the overall use of drugs in the UK had stabilised.

Cannabis use

The figures suggested 11.2% of Britons aged 15-24, and 12.7% of those aged between 15-34, had taken cocaine.

An estimated 12 million EU citizens aged 15-64 had taken cocaine at some point, 11 million had used amphetamines and 9.5 million had taken ecstasy.

Some 71 million European citizens – about one in four people – had tried cannabis.

The figure for cannabis in the UK was 30.1% of the 15-64 age group, topped only by France (30.6%) and Denmark (36.5%).

The report also said ecstasy use had remained consistently higher in the UK compared to other countries.

It added: “Data from a few countries suggest that cocaine could be replacing amphetamines and ecstasy among some sectors of the drug-using population.

“This may be the case in the UK and Denmark, and to some extent in Spain.”

‘Generation betrayed’

Shadow home secretary Dominic Grieve said the report confirmed the UK’s status as the “cocaine capital of Europe”.

“It is particularly disturbing that we have the highest proportion of 15 and 16-year-olds using cocaine – the government’s failure is betraying a whole generation of young people,” he said.

“This is due to Labour’s chaotic, confused and staggeringly complacent approach to drugs. Drugs wreck lives, destroy communities and fuel crime – the fact Labour do not recognise this make them part of the problem, not the solution.”

Last week, figures from the British Crime Survey suggested about 810,000 Britons had taken cocaine in the past year.

Some 3% of people questioned admitted using class A drugs over the previous 12 months, which was less than the previous year.

A Home Office spokesman said: “Home Office figures published last week show overall drug use in the UK is at an all time low and the number of seizures is up 15% on the last annual statistics.

“Alongside this, new figures today show the number of problem drug users has remained stable. We continue to focus our efforts on reducing the harm caused by illegal drugs through tough enforcement, education and treatment.”

source: BBC

More Treatment & Detox Articles

How much is too much alcohol?

For Filipinos, no celebration is complete without an abundance of food and alcohol drinks. This is clearly evident during the long Holiday season in the country, with Filipinos partying almost weekly until Christmas or New Year’s day. Experts, however, warn that people should take stock of the harm social bingeing and the occasional or regular….

Why drinkers do it all again

Some people drink to forget, but scientists have found that anyone who binge drinks is more likely to forget only the worst experiences of being drunk – which is why alcohol is such an addictive drug. Alcohol has been found to affect memory in a selective manner. Drinking makes it easier to remember the good….

The Business of Opium in Afghanistan: Drug Addiction

Afghanistan supplies virtually all of the world’s illegal opium. Last year, the country’s drug trade was a $4-billion business, half of which alone was produced in the south where the fighting against the Taliban insurgency is the fiercest. Getting Afghanistan to rid itself of poppy is a pillar of U.S. policy there, because the Taliban….

Alcoholism among older people may be overlooked

As people age, they may tend to mix alcohol with prescription drugs. Disaster can ensue. Research suggests alcoholism among the elderly may not be diagnosed or is simply overlooked. Todd Wagner, clinical director at Blue Mountain Counseling in Dayton, said alcoholism among seniors is a growing problem, often going unnoticed. Maybe providers aren’t asking seniors….

Alcohol addiction

Addiction is basically the dependence of the body on some physical or psychological need. Addiction can have adverse as well as more favorable results on the body, largely depending on the type of addiction. Today, larger part of the population is alcohol addicted. Alcohol is a liquid, which is derived by the “fermentation” of different….