THE CONSUMPTION of illegal drugs has peaked and is now in decline for the first time in at least a decade, a new study has found.
The survey by the National Advisory Committee on Drugs reveals a very significant decline in the number of young people taking cocaine, although it remains popular among the older age group.
The number of 25-to-34-year-olds who reported using cocaine in the past year was 2.5 per cent, one-third lower than consumption levels when the research was last carried out four years ago.
The data reveals what appear to be high consumption levels of prescribed drugs and over-the-counter painkillers, with nearly a third of women and a quarter of men surveyed saying they used them in the past year.
A new trend emerging is the popularity of psychoactive substances – products that were sold as legal highs by head shops before they were banned.
Many of these are still available on the illegal drugs market and are now the second-most commonly consumed drug type in the Republic after cannabis.
Minister of State Róisín Shortall, who is responsible for the national drugs strategy, said that while some of the figures suggested people were trying drugs when they were young and then moving on, there was still a need to improve drugs prevention campaigns for the young.
She also believed drug treatment needed to be geared towards drug users moving to a completely drug-free life. “We must present drug users with the opportunities to achieve a life without drugs.”
At present, many heroin users are treated with methadone which can lead to long-term dependency.
Of the 5,134 people aged 15 to 64 years surveyed in the Republic, 6 per cent said they had used cannabis in the past year.
Psychoactive substances were the next most commonly used drug type, with 3.5 per cent of respondents reporting using in the past 12 months.
The next most commonly used drug was cocaine, with 1.5 per cent of those surveyed reporting using it in the previous year.
For all other drugs, the usage rates for the past year were much lower; 0.5 per cent for ecstasy and magic mushrooms, 0.3 for LSD and 0.1 per cent for heroin.
A total of 27 per cent of people surveyed reported using some kind of illegal drug at least once in their lifetime and 7 per cent reported using an illegal drug at least once in the past year.
In the North, usage rates were identical, with 27 per cent having taken drugs in their lifetime and 7 per cent using in the past year. However, past-year drug use for the North has shown a more marked decline, down from 9 per cent four years ago.
Many Garda sources believe the decrease in people’s disposable income since the recession began is largely responsible for the decline. For example, when the drugs prevalence study was first carried out in 2002-03, 5.1 per cent of respondents reported using cannabis in the past year.
This increased to 6.3 per cent by 2006-07, but has now fallen back slightly to 6 per cent.
Similarly, in 2002-03, 1.1 per cent of those surveyed reported having used cocaine in the past year, increasing to 1.7 per cent in 2006-07 and falling back to 1.5 per cent in the latest study.
Levels of heroin use have remained static in the three surveys since 2002-03, with 0.1 per cent of respondents in all three reporting use of the drug over the previous year.
Concern at extra strength of cannabis
MINISTER OF State for Primary Care Róisín Shortall has expressed concern at the increased potency of cannabis being cultivated in grow houses.
While commending the Garda and Revenue’s customs service for their work in combating the drug trade, she said the threat posed by cannabis grow houses should not be underestimated.
“I want to stress that cannabis use involves serious physical and mental health risks, and it is important that we get this message out to users and potential users. Also, the potency of the cannabis now available is much higher than in the past.” Ms Shortall was speaking at the launch of a new drugs prevalence study by the National Advisory Committee on Drugs, which advises on Government drug policy.
Chairman Dr Des Corrigan said there were three main reasons why the potency of cannabis cultivated in grow houses was stronger.
Many of the plants being grown were of a genetic make-up that ensured they produced crops with high levels of THC, the property that gives a plant its cannabis potency. These plants also lacked a substance called CBD, which “seemed to protect the brain” from the effects of THC, which can include psychosis. Growers were also using nutrients and intensely hot and bright growing conditions to increase potency.
In many cases, only female plants were being used. These did not produce seeds, meaning all of the energy within the plant went into the THC content, increasing the plants' potency when harvested, dried and readied for smoking. CONOR LALLY
Highs And Lows
7%The use of illegal drugs has fallen, with 7 per cent saying they had taken a drug at some point in the past year compared to 7.2 per cent four years ago, a small but significant decline after years of growth.
0.5%Ecstasy use has halved in the past four years, with 0.5 per cent reporting using it in the past year compared to 1.2 per cent previously.
33%The number of young people, aged between 15 and 24 years, taking cocaine has dropped by a third in the past four years.
Men in the 15-24 years age group are twice as likely as women in the age group to smoke cannabis and three times as likely to take cocaine and psychoactive - formerly headshop - drugs.
32.5%The decline in smoking has continued, with 32.5 per cent having smoked in the past year compared to 36.3 per cent four years ago and 38 per cent eight years ago.
32%Rates of "other opiate" use, such as painkillers and prescribed medicines, were high with 32 per cent of women and 24 per cent of men consuming them in the past year.