Young people treated for alcohol and drug addiction 'at a record level'

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by Change | 8 Jun 2009

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There has been a drop in the number of young people addicted to heroin or crack and a rise in the number treated for cocaine, cannabis and ecstasy abuse, a report has said.

Last year saw a record number of young people being treated for drug and alcohol addictions and related problems, according to a new study.

According to statistics from the National Treatment Agency (NTA), there was a 12 per cent rise in two years in the number of people aged 13 to 24 years old seen by counsellors in England.

The types of drugs taken by young people have also changed, according to the study by Radio 1's Newsbeat.

Cocaine, cannabis, ecstasy - often mixed with alcohol - are increasingly popular, while there has been a drop in addiction to 'hard' drugs such as heroin.

Last year, 18,597 people aged 13 to 24 years old were treated for an addiction to heroin or crack, which was down 19 per cent in two years, according to the NTA.

Howard Parker, Professor Emeritus at Manchester University, explained some of the issues behind the trends to NewsBeat: "Alcohol is cheaper and more available, cannabis is far stronger, cocaine is half the price it used to be and you can get half a dozen ecstasy tablets for £10."

According to Smoke Alarm, 44 per cent of 15 to 16-year-olds in the UK admitted to using cannabis at some point in their lives when questioned for the 2008 United Nations International Narcotics Control Board report.

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