The most used and most dangerous drugs in the world
The latest Global Drug Survey for 2017 has been released, revealing which narcotics are most used, and the most dangerous to take.
The survey researched the drug-taking habits of 120,000 people across 50 countries, finding that a large amount of people admitted to using illegal drugs in the past 12 months.
The survey is not meant to give an indication of national averages for drug use, but rather explores health outcomes associated with the use of drugs and alcohol, and the better understand the decision making behind drug use.
According to the survey results, 80% of respondents said they had used illegal drugs at some point in their life, while 65% said they’d used in the past year. 37% had used in the last month.
By far the most used drug was alcohol, with 98.7% of respondents saying they had consumed alcohol in their life. This was followed by cannabis (78%) and tobacco (63%).
Surprisingly caffeinated drinks were the fourth-most used substance, with 58% of respondents saying they’d had it in their lifetime use. Under global definitions, caffeine is considered a drug because of its stimulant properties, as well as being an addictive substance.
Excluding legal substances, cannabis far outweighs other drugs as the most popular narcotic (78%) followed by MDMA (34%) and cocaine (30%).
Magic mushrooms (Psilocybin) also features among the most popular drugs, with 24% of respondents saying they’ve had it – but the drug features more prominently in another measure.
The most dangerous (and safest drugs to use)
Magic mushrooms were found to be the safest drug to consume, according to respondent health data.
Fewer than 0.2% of respondents reported having to seek emergency medical treatment of any kind from ingesting the substance. Most negative side effects of the drug are related to panic attacks, or mental distress.
This is compared to drugs like Methamphetamine (meth) which was found to be the most dangerous substance taken.
Synthetic cannabis, which are man-made cannabinoids that have concentrated effects, were found to be the second most dangerous, and alcohol was the third-most dangerous.
According to the survey, the rate of emergencies related to magic mushroom use is considerably lower than other drugs “presumably because of intrinsic safety of magic
mushrooms – the greatest risk is picking the wrong type,” it said.
“The smaller dosing using units (a single mushroom v an LSD tab) and greater understanding of how many mushrooms may constitute a typical dose for a desired effect” also play a role.
“Seeking emergency medical treatment can be taken as a proxy measure for the acute
harms experienced following the use of alcohol and other drugs.
“Emergency medical attendance and admission also represent significant economic
burden upon acute medical services.”
The full report can be read here.
Read: Why the government faces a tough time keeping private dagga use in SA illegal
Loading ...