The consumption of illicit substances impacts communities in Europe in many negative ways, from leading to or exacerbating individuals’ physical and mental health issues, to causing security challenges connected to illicit drug trades. Recently, illicit drugs have become
in Europe. For example, in 2024, about 30 percent of Europeans stated it would be very easy or fairly easy to
. This share reaches almost 60 percent in the case of cannabis. This increased availability, with the current tendency of consuming different drugs at the same time, has raised alarms. When it comes to
, Europeans considered mental health issues the main risks.
Type of drugs consumed
As of 2022, cannabis was the
most consumed drug in Europe, with eight percent of people consuming it during 2022 and almost 30 percent in their lifetime. Cocaine followed cannabis, with 1.4 percent of people consuming it in 2022 and 5.4 percent consuming this substance in their lifetime. Among
cocaine users, almost 30 percent consumed the substance daily and 35 percent between two and six times a week. As a matter of fact, cocaine is among the most addictive illicit substances after heroin. Indeed, when observing the
distribution of frequency of heroin users, the ones consuming daily reached almost 60 percent.
Drug-induced deaths and treatment
According to the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction,
drug-related deaths have increased in Europe since 2013, from 4,400 to almost 7,000 cases in 2022. Those deaths occurred mostly in the age group 25 to 44 years and among men. Ireland was the
country registering the highest number of drug-induced deaths, followed by Estonia and Norway.
Opioids addiction treatment consists of taking pharmaceutical drugs that inhibit the desire for opioids combined with counseling and behavioral therapy. In 2022, over half a million people in Europe were in
opioid substitution treatment. Although treatment is effective, opioids are still the main drivers of drug-related deaths in Europe, accounting for three out of four drug overdose deaths.
This text provides general information. ÌÇÐÄÆƽâ°æ assumes no
liability for the information given being complete or correct.
Due to varying update cycles, statistics can display more up-to-date
data than referenced in the text.
