Home
Newsletter
Events
Blogs
Reports
Graphics
RSS
About Us
Support
Write for Us
Media Info
Advertising Info
Drug abuse

Prescription drug abuse exceeds heroin, cocaine and ecstasy combined

Wednesday, June 23, 2010 by: David Gutierrez, staff writer
Tags: drug abuse, pharmaceuticals, health news


Most Viewed Articles
https://www.naturalnews.com/029054_drug_abuse_pharmas.html
Delicious
diaspora
Print
Email
Share

(NaturalNews) Rates of prescription drug abuse worldwide are higher than those for the use of cocaine, ecstasy and heroin, combined, according to a new report by the United Nations' International Narcotics Control Boards (INCB).

"Abuse of such drugs has been spreading over the world in recent years," said report co-author Hamid Ghodse of St. George's University in London. "It needs to be tackled urgently."

Ghodse said that prescription drug abuse is a "hidden problem," and it is difficult for authorities to get comprehensive data on the scale of the abuse. Recent high-profile celebrity deaths from prescription drug abuse, such as that of Michael Jackson, have brought more attention to the issue, however.

The INCB report notes that in the United States alone, an estimated 6.2 million people were addicted to prescription drugs in 2008, or roughly 2 percent of the population. Among illegal drugs, only cannabis use exceeds this figure.

The report further estimates that between 1 and 3 percent of Canadians abuse prescription opioids alone. Students in a number of European countries, including France, Italy, Lithuania and Poland, are estimated to abuse sedatives and tranquilizers at a rate of 10 to 18 percent.

The problem is fueled by the prevalence of poorly regulated online pharmacies, which often sell diverted, fake or stolen drugs without a prescription.

The INCB also warned that as governments and the pharmaceutical industry have cracked down on illicit distribution of the sedative Rohypnol (known generically as flunitrazepam and colloquially as "the date rape drug"), less tightly controlled drugs have begun to displace it among sexual predators. In particular, the use of ketamine and gamma-Butyrolactone (GBL) in sexual assaults has risen.

"Since in many countries these drugs are easily available, they frequently fall into criminal hands," Ghodse said.

Organized crime has stepped into the business of prescription drugs, using methods from theft to manufacture to secure their products, INCB president Sevil Atasoy said, and continually seeking out new ways to get these products to market.

Sources for this story include: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE61N24B....

Receive Our Free Email Newsletter

Get independent news alerts on natural cures, food lab tests, cannabis medicine, science, robotics, drones, privacy and more.


comments powered by Disqus



Natural News Wire (Sponsored Content)

Science.News
Science News & Studies
Medicine.News
Medicine News and Information
Food.News
Food News & Studies
Health.News
Health News & Studies
Herbs.News
Herbs News & Information
Pollution.News
Pollution News & Studies
Cancer.News
Cancer News & Studies
Climate.News
Climate News & Studies
Survival.News
Survival News & Information
Gear.News
Gear News & Information
Glitch.News
News covering technology, stocks, hackers, and more