Contrary to what most people think, addiction is a sickness that affects the human brain and behavior. Drug addiction is when you can’t stop using legal or illegal substances and it has gotten to the level of an epidemic across the world with over 240 million drug users.
Drug users who are addicted find it hard to stop even when it puts their health at risk; when it drains them financially and emotionally and other problems for you or your loved ones. There’s that urge to use drugs every minute of the day, even when they want to call it quits. In this article, we discuss drug addiction stat you may need to know about.
Opioids
Opioids are basically drugs that numb feelings of pain and cause intense excitement. They are really bad for your health as it’s easy to get addicted to them. Research has shown that every day over 130 Americans lose their life from an opioid overdose. Between 1999 and 2017, no less than 400,000 US citizens also lost their lives to this drug.
The sales of the painkiller have gone up by 300% since 1999 and about an average of 40% of the people who even take the prescribed drugs misuse them.
Heroin
Also a popular drug, Heroin is widely used in various countries of the world. It is being harvested from opium poppy pods in locations where it is grown and has garnered popularity in recent years in the mid-Atlantic region of the States. With that area tagged as the drug’s capital of America.
As a matter of fact, 494,000 Americans, just over 12 are already heroin users. Studies have shown that 25% of people who try heroin eventually become addicted. In 2017, 81,000 Americans for the first time attempted heroin and more than 15,000 of them died from drug overdoses. It has been tagged by a government report along with other opioids as the main cause of 1.3 million emergency room visits in 2014.
Marijuana
Ever since it was discovered years ago, marijuana has steadily risen to popularity. It is a psychoactive drug derived from the cannabis plant and is fast becoming legal in the States. Marijuana is, however, not safe as it is also addictive.
Every year, 30 million Americans smoke Marijuana, and about 30% of the people who use it have a marijuana disorder. People as young as 12 are recorded to have smoked Marijuana.
Alcohol
It is the most abused substance in the US. Every year, 1 in 20 deaths are a result of excessive alcohol consumption. It is one of the major causes of premature death but is often left under-attended. Also, an average of 95,000 people die each year from alcohol. It keeps getting worse as men between 18 and 25 are likely to become alcoholics.
Drug addiction poses a serious threat to the lives of millions of people. However, all hope is not lost. You can make the right choice today and get help for you or your loved one today.
