Friday, November 23, 2007

Nothing to be proud of

 Research has shown  that one in seven children in Britain have tried cannabis before the age of 13; more than three times the EU average.

The report also said that the growth of cocaine use in Britain and Spain had proved to be a precursor of a new boom in cocaine use across Europe. The market has grown by a million new users in the past year alone, making it the second most popular illegal drug after cannabis.

Spain has the highest level of cocaine abuse out of 29 countries across Europe, with consumption levels similar to the US. In Spain, 5.2% of young adults aged 15-34 say they have used cocaine in the last 12 months, compared with 4.7% in the UK.

Spain also has the highest proportion of cannabis users among people aged 15-34 at 20% compared with the Czech Republic 19%, Italy 16.5%  and Britain 16.3%.

Britain, though accounts for most of the children under 15 who go into drug treatment each year, with 2,251 out of the 3,237 new patients in Europe, the latest figures show. The number of young British children in treatment, mainly for using cannabis or sniffing inhalants, has grown threefold from 797 in 2000.

The only crumb of comfort in the report is  the "cautious optimism" expressed about the use of cannabis.  The European market apparently stabilised in the past year, with about 3 million using it on a daily basis and signs that its popularity among the young is waning.

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