By Join Together Staff | June 20, 2012
The rise in prescription drug abuse is leading to an increase in heroin addiction, reports NBC News. A growing number of young people who start by abusing expensive prescription drugs are turning to heroin, which is cheaper and easier to obtain. This alarming trend highlights the need for stricter regulation of prescription medications. Additionally, it underscores the importance of raising awareness about the dangers associated with the illegal use of both prescription drugs and heroin.
Prescription pain pills cost $20 to $60, while heroin costs $3 to $10 a bag. For those struggling with heroin use, recognizing the signs you need help with drug addiction is crucial for getting the appropriate treatment. Programs that offer methadone are often part of a comprehensive treatment plan aimed at helping individuals overcome addiction. Many young people who use heroin start off snorting the drug, and within weeks, most start shooting up, according to the news report.
“Kids in the city know not to touch it, but the message never got out to the suburbs,” said Chicago Police Capt. John Roberts, whose son died of a heroin overdose. He founded the Heroin Epidemic Relief Organization to help other families deal with teen heroin use.
In 2009, the most recent year for which national data is available, 510 young adults, ages 15 to 24, died of a heroin overdose, up from 198 in 1999. Almost 90 percent of teens who are addicted to heroin are white.
“It’s hard to talk about the heroin problem without talking about the prescription drug problem,” said Rafael Lemaitre, of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy.
Drug Abuse Kills 200,000 People Each Year: UN Report: Drug abuse kills about 200,000 people worldwide each year, according to a new United Nations (UN) report. Global treatment for drug abuse would cost $250 billion per year if everyone who needed help received proper care, according to the UN.
Fewer than one in five people who need treatment actually receive it, according to the Associated Press. Crimes committed by people who need money to finance their drug habit, as well as loss of productivity, add tremendous costs for many countries, the report notes.
According to the UN, around 230 million people, which is roughly 5 percent of the global population, experimented with illegal drugs at least once in 2010. In the United States, women used drugs at a rate of about two-thirds that of men. However, in countries like India and Indonesia, women made up just one-tenth of the total number of illegal drug users. These statistics highlight the varying cultural and societal influences on drug use across different regions. Furthermore, understanding these patterns can help tailor more effective prevention and intervention strategies worldwide.
The 2012 World Drug Report cited an increase in synthetic drug production worldwide, “including significant increases in the production and consumptions of psychoactive substances that are not under international control.” Overall, use of illegal drugs remained stable during the past five years, at between 3.4 and 6.6 percent of the world’s adult population. Marijuana was the most widely used drug.
Over the past 12 years, the cultivation of coca bushes has dropped by 33 percent. In 2010, methamphetamine seizures surged to more than twice the number reported in 2008. Similarly, in Europe, the number of Ecstasy pills confiscated also more than doubled. These trends reflect a growing global focus on drug enforcement, with authorities increasingly successful in curbing the production and distribution of these substances. Additionally, advancements in detection technologies have played a significant role in these increased seizures.
“Heroin, cocaine and other drugs continue to kill around 200,000 people a year, shattering families and bringing misery to thousands of other people, insecurity and the spread of HIV,” the Executive Director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, Yury Fedotov, said in a news release . He added that as developing countries emulate industrialized nations’ lifestyles, it is likely that drug consumption will increase.