In the United States, where the number of overdose deaths continues to rise, people are more likely to use drugs for the first time during the summer, a new study reveals.
In the United States, the number of drug overdose deaths has been on the rise since the early 2000s. In 2017, 70,000 Americans are said to have died of overdose, 10% more than in 2016. While 27,000 of these deaths were caused by the consumption of non-opiate substances such as cocaine, methamphetamine and other psychostimulants including MDMA, the increase is largely due to the opiate category. These include heroin, morphine, and semi-synthetic opiates like oxycodone, a painkiller prescribed on prescription but widely abused on the black market.
In a country in the midst of a crisis, researchers are trying to understand when and how Americans cross the threshold of first drug use. According to a new study published on July 23 in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, teens and adults are more likely to try illegal or recreational drugs for the first time during the summer festival season.
The temptation of summer
To reach these conclusions, researchers from the New York School of Medicine studied data collected by the National Survey on Drug Use and Health between 2011 and 2017. The latter collected data from 394,415 people from 12 years and over. The participants were asked about their use of various drugs via an online interview. New users were specifically asked about the month and year in which they started. Results: One-third of recent LSD initiates used the drug for the first time during the summer. Respectively 30%, 30% and 28% of users of marijuana, ecstasy and cocaine had also started during this period.
“First-time users may not know the effects of various drugs, so it’s important to understand when people start to behave like this,” says Joseph J. Palamar, assistant professor who conducted the study. . These results could be explained, on the one hand by people who have more free time to have fun during the summer and on the other hand by the growing popularity of outdoor activities such as music festivals where drug use is commonplace.
Determine specific situations where people use for the first time
“Parents and educators concerned for their children should educate them about the potential risks associated with drug use, but it seems that it is necessary to insist before or during the summer when the rate of initiation increases”, explains Palamar. Based on previous research, he also recommends being around trusted friends when taking drugs for the first time. It is also essential to drink enough fluids and get enough rest to avoid dehydration, exhaustion or more serious side effects such as an attack of sunstroke, remind the authors of the study.
Further research is now needed to determine the specific situations, especially during the summer, when people are more likely to use drugs for the first time and to what extent this was planned or not.
Increasingly common drug use in France
In France, where the prescription of therapeutic cannabis will soon be tested, the consumption of this recreational drug represents more than 80% of all narcotics with 3.9 million users including 1.2 million regular users (including 30% young adults). About 1/3 of them have problematic consumption and 10% are at the stage of addiction, according to the site alcoholassistance.net. Among teenagers, the use of marijuana is a real problem. At the age of 16, young French people are the first consumers in Europe. In addition, 38% of 15-16 year olds in school have tried cannabis at least once. Among 18-25 year olds, 56% of men have already tried it, against 39% of women. Among 15-64 year olds, 4.2% of men and 1.2% of women use it regularly. However, after 30 years, most regular users give up.
As for cocaine, it has long gone beyond privileged circles and now affects many French people. According to the report of the French Observatory of drugs and drug addiction (OFDT) published in April 2019, more than 1.5% of respondents say they have taken cocaine during the year. A record, which is partly explained by “increased availability of these products and the positive image they enjoy”, according to the report. In 20 years, the share of 18-24 years old having experimented with cocaine in France has doubled. According to the Information, Intelligence and Strategic Analysis Service on Crime (Sirasco), this is because the “white powder” market is increasingly accessible.
We are also witnessing a significant consumption of ecstasy or new synthetic drugs at festivals or nightclubs. Although specialists continue to warn of its psychological and neurological effects, in 2014, 4.3% of 18-64 year olds experienced MDMA/Ecstasy, or approximately 1.6 million people. The most affected age groups are 26-34 (8.5%) and 18-25 (7.0%). In 2017, experimentation stood at 3.4% among 17-year-olds (3.9% of boys and 2.8% of girls), a slight decline compared to 2014, when it concerned 3 .8% of these teenagers.
Finally, after a period of constant evolution between 2000 and 2005, the level of heroin use increased until 2008 and is now again in a phase of stability since then, especially among boys. Currently, the experimental threshold in France is 1.5% for the entire population.
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