Drug addiction problems growing in Africa with 'flasblooding'

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by Change | 13 Jul 2010

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Flashblooding carries with it a high risk of HIV and other blood-borne diseases for drug addicts

The need for drug addiction rehabilitation programmes and detox programmes in Africa has been highlighted by the emergence of a disturbing new practice, known as 'flashblooding'.

According to the NY Times, desperate heroin addicts in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, on the island of Zanzibar and in Mombasa, Kenya have actually been seen to inject themselves with another addict's blood in order to share a high or stave off withdrawal.

Although the practice is not common, it has alarmed officials, particularly because of the health risks involved with the dangerous practice.

"Injecting yourself with fresh blood is a crazy practice - it's the most effective way of infecting yourself with HIV," Dr Nora D Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, told the publication.

"Even though the number who do it is a relatively small group, they are vectors for HIV because they support themselves by sex work."

Among female users of heroin in Tanzania, the rate of HIV infection is as high as 64 per cent, highlighting the immense risk of flashblooding, particularly as research indicates it is primarily women, moreover sex workers, who are practicing it.

Last month, meanwhile, the New Zealand Hereald reported on the growing numbers of youngsters suffering as a result of drug abuse in north-west India, calling the trend a "human crisis". 

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