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Heroin Use USAHeroin use per se, as well as heroin use USA, is a relatively rare occurence. This is not to say that it does not occur or that it can have tragic consequences when it does occur. However when we consider the how much money is being ploughed into the "War on Drugs" it is disproportionate to the number of heroin users. It is estimated that this year the US will spend around $50 billion on the war on drugs, around $1600 a second. According to the latest available statistics on heroin use USA, the National Survey on Drug Use and Health 2004, approximately 1.3% of americans have ever used heroin. This is lifetime usage, not current users or numbers dependent on heroin. In the same survey the percentage using heroin in the last 12 months was 0.2% with about half that number (0.1%) having used in the last 30 days. Heroin use, like any drug use, is self-selecive and for the majority of people time limited. Many people who try it once, or even a couple of times, do not continue. Many who do continue only continue until they "mature out", according to most studies this happens around 35-40 years old.
Another interesting finding emerges when we look at heroin use by employment status. The first thing to note is that 1.3% of those employed full time and a further 1.2% of those employed part time have used heroin. Remember that these are percentages of subjects in that category. So 3.1% of the unemployed is swamped by the numbers of employed. So what this means is that the unemployed heroin users are ounumbered over 20 to 1 by the employed users.
Our normal image of a heroin user is not someone who holds down a job, even a part-time one. However evidence is emerging that there are recreational heroin users. That is that people are using at weekends or special occasions and that there is no deterioration or progression in their use. Shewan and Delgado (2006) followed a number of recreation users and have been following them for around a decade now. Other studies are finding similar results.Perhaps it is time we started for society to revise its views about heroin and other illcit drugs. Rather than view their use as leading to inevitable addiction and deterioration, it may be better to think of them more like alcohol. Clearly some people can use alcohol without any negative effects while others cannot.
Return from Heroin use USA to Substance use statistics USA
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