A new report by Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD), UK has highlighted the increased usage of cocaine in the country with an estimated 2.4 per cent of the population in England and Wales having used the class A drug during 2013-14.
The report titled “Cocaine Powder: Review of the evidence of prevalence and patterns of use, harms and implications” brings to the forefront many startling findings about the usage patterns of the drug in UK, availability of relatively impure but cheap variants that is pushing the drug to middle-income groups, and number of cocaine-trading criminal gangs operating in London alone, among other things.
Some of the findings of the report are:
- An estimated 2.4 per cent of individuals in England and Wales, aged 16-59 years, had used cocaine powder in the past year, according to Home Office statistics making it the second most commonly used illegal drug.
- Nearly one in 10 of 16 to 59-year-olds have used cocaine in their lifetime according to the 2013/14 Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW).
- The use of cocaine powder is strongly associated with simultaneous consumption of alcohol and the night-time economy.
- Even infrequent cocaine use can carry the risk of acute health problems such as cardiovascular issues, temporary psychotic symptoms and convulsions – and these can be experienced by first-time users.
- Cocaine (including crack) was involved in, but not necessarily the cause of, 234 of 3,521 deaths in England, Scotland and Wales in 2013.
- More than 50 cutting agents have been identified, including some that can cause serious medical harm.
- Patterns of use in the UK are high in comparison to most other European countries.
- Metropolitan Police statistics show around 300 of 1,200 criminal gangs in London are linked to the cocaine trade.
- Cocaine is linked to high-risk sexual behaviour.
“Consumption of powdered cocaine in the United Kingdom has changed radically over the last two decades”, said Professor Les Iversen, chair of the ACMD. “Once characterised as the preserve of wealthy bankers and celebrities, the research highlighted in this report shows a cheaper, low-purity version of the drug has permeated society far more widely.”
“I hope this unique and comprehensive report will assist professionals and policy-makers with an interest in the field and inform future debate on this important issue”, he added.
