Cocaine and psychoactive drugs on the rise in Europe: the Report 2007

[demoleft]

This is from the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction:
the Annual report 2007: the state of the drugs problem in Europe

Europe was never so "intoxicated" as this time. Cocaine and psychoactive drugs involve people from 11 on.
Beautiful portrait of a continent that reminds me the last years of the Roman Empire.
Still better figures than US (thanx also to preventing policies), but this is not enough.

Differently from the 60's and 70's (which is just comparative, not justifying), young people use drugs in complete and voluntary unawareness of the social/historical topics. No plans, no projects, no cultural revolution nor social reaction. Just burning out their mind for the evening, that's all.

Here the figures:

"Cannabis
Lifetime prevalence: at least 70 million, or one in five European adults
Last year use: about 23 million European adults or one third of lifetime users
Use in the past 30 days: over 13 million Europeans
Country variation in last year use: 1.0 % to 11.2 %"

"Cocaine
Lifetime prevalence: at least 12 million, or around 4 % of European adults
Last year use: 4.5 million European adults or one third of lifetime users
Use in the past 30 days: around 2 million
Country variation in last year use: 0.1 % to 3 %"

"Ecstasy
Lifetime prevalence: about 9.5 million European adults (3 % of European adults)
Last year use: 3 million or one third of lifetime users
Use in the past 30 days: more than 1 million
Country variation in last year use: 0.2 % to 3.5 %"

"Amphetamines
Lifetime prevalence: almost 11 million or around 3.5 % of European adults
Last year use: 2 million, one fi fth of lifetime users
Use in the past 30 days: less than 1 million
Country variation in last year use: 0.0 % to 1.3 %"

"Opioids
Problem opioids use: between one and eight cases per 1 000 adult population (aged 15–64)
Over 7 500 acute drug deaths, with opioids being found in around 70 % of them (2004 data)
Principal drug in about 50 % of all drug treatment requests
More than 585 000 opioid users received substitution
treatment in 2005."

"The EMCDDA has revised its estimate of cocaine use in this report to 4.5 million Europeans having used the drug in the last year, up from 3.5 million in the 2006 annual report. The general picture reported last year of a stabilising situation is also called into question by the new data, which point to an overall increase in use. The new data confirm cocaine’s place in Europe as overall the second most commonly used illicit drug, after cannabis and ahead of both ecstasy and amphetamine on all measures, and estimates of last month use of cocaine are now more than double those for ecstasy."

"Requests for drug treatment for those with cocaine problems are rising. In 2005, cocaine was the primary drug of about 13 % of clients demanding treatment, and in an even higher proportion of those new to treatment (22 %). The number of new treatment demands
reported has roughly tripled over the last five years, and now stands at over 33 000."

The source: Annual Report 2007, EMCDDA website

[symbolman]

1. no mention of LSD?

of course they have bring up a psychoactive drug like Ecstasy that actually DOES eat holes in your brain, while common asprin will cause more damage to your body than LSD would..

The world is freaking out, and they need drugs to cope.. Thanks to Bush and Blair we can assume that Afghani goodies like Heroin are flooding Europe, and probably America too..

[demoleft]

2. i don't know if it's out of freak...

actually, cocaine costs much. young consumers use daddy's money. others burn their monthly incomes on evenings out.
i never heard of some voluntary associated working on poor people assistance or aged people help using any drugs.

the pattern of the century in drugs is dis-engagement. it's mostly out of luxury.
then if you come to easy and cheap chemical bombs - they're often used in connection with disco evenings or sex approach or group identity, expecially as a teen.
it's a cultural failure in education? yes.
it's something the young people may put totally on adults' account? no.

it's time youngsters take on them the responsibility. many at the age of 16 joined the partisan army against the nazis and fascists in 1943 in Italy and went to fight and died for freedom and to defend their families. i don't expect a similar courage in today's causes, but i can't suffer this detached attitude. it's just caring about one's own self.

i believe many drug using young people here in europe just seek fun and luxury. bad omen for the future: indolence is on the rise.

ciao from italy! ;)

ps: absolutely agreed on Afghanistan - no one seems really engaged in stopping the traffic...

[symbolman]

4. they did a study in Scandinavia years ago

which showed that most people use some amount of drugs as a youth, but that most people also OUTGREW drugs and went on to be usual citizens, paying mortgages, raising children, attending PTA (here in America that's where Parents and Teachers meet to see how their kids are doing in school, in case you don't know that) and some used a small amount of pot as grownups...

Like we say here in the US, "There's a Time and a Place to use drugs... It's called College!" :)

Personally, I'm too Busy to use drugs, raising a 3 year old at age 55 :)

Just like sexual experimentation, most is done as a youth..

I'd love to visit Europe again, was only in Britain while in the millitary, and loved it. Italy is one of my wife and my choices should we travel, she has a cousin there..

So HELLO from what was formerly called the United States! :)

[demoleft]

5. he he :) i think the time of cannabis is gone...

...we've been facing something different here!

cocaine is a traffic that makes mafia rich. they buy and gain. gangs from africa and east europe sell on the streets. money gained is then "washed" and "cleaned" in good legal business (investments in new buildings & the like in the USA too, according to our antimafia judge). imagine how it affects the market.

people kill in the traffic from Asia - compel young people to work and so on.

in italy the health care system is public - so the costs for illnesses and damages due to drugs are also public and are a social weight. if you include car crashes, murders and violence related to that (and to alcohol) - well the figures are not small.

so you see, it's no more the little cannabis one consumes within his walls with friends. we are witnessing a grow in the scale!

as to your possible travel - you MUST come to italy! i'm from Abruzzo, wonderful place with a national park at the heart, on the adriatic sea. i'll save a bottle of Montepulciano Red Wine to drink with you ;)

ciao!

[symbolman]

6. Sounds like a beautiful place

It would be a pleasure to drink some good wine with a DU'r in Italy, and you are welcome to visit us in Hawaii, we'll supply the Mai Tais and whales jumping :)

Keep in touch please, always nice to make a friend :)

[ThePowerofWill]

3. Nothing wrong with a little drug use.

I have to laugh at European cocaine lol! The shit is very weak, and expensive. My last trip to the Netherlands we did a bunch of coke as a group, and i couldn't even hardly get off being used to much stronger stuff i was used to from here at home.

On a side note, a friend of mine from Kingston upon Thames in the UK was amazed by the quality and cheap availability of good cocaine here. Gotta love those open borders lol!