- Cannabis, opioids and amphetamines top the list of the most popular drugs in the world according to their consumption.
- Non-medical opioids caused 69% of deaths directly related to illicit substances in 2019.
- Ecstasy is one of the substances with the highest decline in recent years, especially due to the closure of nightclubs during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The opinion people have about drugs is personal, although the truth is that there are some more popular than the rest. While some people are in favor of its use and even demand regulation, there are also others who are against this type of substance. Therefore it is very difficult to reach a general consensus on this issue.
What is its official definition?
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) it is understood that A drug is a therapeutic substance or not that, introduced into the body by any route of administration (inhalation, ingestion, friction, parenteral, intravenous administration), produces an alteration.
However, another of its characteristics is that it is susceptible to creating dependency and it can be psychological, physical or both. Therefore, among the detractors it is affirmed that the risks are more than the possible benefits.
The most popular drugs
For its part, the list of substances of this type is almost infinite because there are not only some natural ones but also other chemicals. According to latest world report on drugs from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) It was obtained that cannabis was the most consumed drug in the world during 2020.
The research mentions that 209 million people consumed it at least once during the 12 months prior to the survey. The report also highlights that the proportion of people suffering from psychiatric disorders and suicides associated with regular cannabis use has increased, as well as the number of hospital admissions for disorders related to the use of this drug.
The same work taken up by Statista places opioids (including opium, heroin and morphine) as the second most popular drug in the world. About 61 million people used them for non-medical reasons. Additionally, opioids caused 69% of drug-related deaths in 2019 and motivated 40% of drug use disorder treatment in 2020.
In the case of amphetamines, 34 million people used them that year. On the other hand, 21 million people consumed cocaine and another 20 ecstasy, the use of which was reduced possibly due to the closure of nightclubs, where this type of substance is usually used, as a consequence of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Another of the study’s conclusions is that cocaine production is “at all-time highs,” seizures of amphetamine and methamphetamine have skyrocketed, and markets for those drugs are expanding into new and more vulnerable regions.
Finally, according to the UNODC, drug use endangers health in general and mental health in particular, and is especially harmful in the first stage of adolescence. It also emphasizes that the markets for illicit substances are linked to violence and other forms of crime.
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