Who’s Using Which Drugs?: International

Thursday, June 25, 2009

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime has issued its annual report on illegal drug use around the world. Although national figures are hard to compare because of varying methods of research, there are some revealing statistics relating to the United States. The U.S. ranks third in per capita use of cocaine, trailing only Scotland and Spain. In the prevalence of the use of cannabis (marijuana and hashish), the U.S. is sixth behind Ghana, Zambia, Canada, Nigeria and New Zealand. For amphetamines, the U.S. is also sixth, this time behind El Salvador, Australia, New Zealand, Scotland, and the Philippines. In the use of ecstasy, the U.S. ranks 13th, with Australia leading the list. In the use of opiates (including heroin), the U.S. is in 22nd place, with Iran and Estonia having the highest rates of usage.

-David Wallechinsky
 

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