by C. Alessandro Mauceri –
The European Drug Report 2023: Trends and Developments by the European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction has been published. The declared objective is to provide an overview of the European situation on drug use and its consequences in 2022. A complex work which had to deal with the lack of data from some countries: due to the time required to compile and submit the individual reports, some of the national reports provided are updated only to 2021.
https://www.emcdda.europa.eu/publications/european-drug-report/2023_en
The data provided to the EMCDDA, the European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction (in charge of the analysis) by the member states of the European Union (plus Turkey and Norway), show a worrying cross-section: according to the researchers, the impact of illicit drug use is visible almost everywhere and at all levels of society. “Almost anything that has psychoactive properties has the potential to be used as a drug. This means that everyone, directly or indirectly, can be affected by illicit drug use and the problems associated with it,” the report reads. Underlining the seriousness of the situation Ylva Johansson, European Commissioner for Home Affairs, who presented the report together with Alexis Goosdeel, director of the EMCDDA.
Sometimes, according to the authors of the report, factors such as the management of psychiatric disorders or juvenile crime complicate the situation. A growing trend of cases of drug-driven violence and corruption has also been noted in some European countries. Problems that are increasing especially in low- and middle-income countries.
The first of the problems highlighted in the report is the high availability of most illicit substances. Drugs often very “pure”. This despite the significant seizures of drugs that often arrive in containers in Europe. Europe also remains an important area of production and processing of some substances such as synthetic drugs and cannabis.
According to the study, cannabis is the most commonly consumed drug in Europe: in 2021, consumption reached record levels in the last decade. The EMCDDA survey found that there are significant regulatory differences in cannabis use between EU countries. In December 2021, Malta legislated for the home cultivation and private use of cannabis. In Germany, a law is being studied to allow home cultivation and non-profit “clubs”. The same in Luxembourg. The Czech Republic has also announced plans for a regulated and taxed distribution system. Cannabis – the current situation in Europe (European Drug Report 2023) | www.emcdda.europa.eu
The researchers point to an increasing variability of cannabis-based drugs available on the European market. They range from “natural” products to synthetic cannabinoids: in May 2022, the presence of the first semi-synthetic cannabinoid, hexahydrocannabinol (HHC), was detected. Its traces have been found in two-thirds of EU member states.
The second most popular drug is cocaine. It was found in around a fifth of overdose deaths in 2021. In the same year, over 303 tonnes of cocaine were seized in EU member states, mostly imported in intermodal containers unloaded at major European ports.
Another theme highlighted in the report is the growing use of substances with hallucinogenic, anesthetic, dissociative or depressive properties: ranging from LSD to hallucinogenic mushrooms, from ketamine to GHB. Increase the amount of ketamine seized. Often users of these drugs use mixtures of different drugs and may not be aware of the interactions and health consequences of using different drugs. Other drugs – the current situation in Europe (European Drug Report 2023) | www.emcdda.europa.eu
Other widespread drugs in Europe are amphetamines, methamphetamines, hexahydrocannabinol, the new synthetic opioids, benzimidazole opioids and, more recently, synthetic cathinones. All synthetic central nervous system stimulants. Case apart from MDMA, a synthetic drug chemically related to amphetamines, but with different effects. In Europe, MDMA use is generally associated with episodic patterns of use in the context of nightlife and entertainment settings. The most commonly used opioid in Europe remains heroin which is also responsible for a large part of the health burden attributed to drug use. In the last period, the amount of heroin seized in EU member states has more than doubled to 9.5 tonnes. To these, however, we must add the 22.2 tons seized in Türkiye.
The delicate topic dealt with in the report is the use of “parenteral” drugs. Despite the decline in injecting drug use in Europe over the last decade, this behavior is still responsible for a very high level of damage to health.
Various measures have been taken by various European countries to combat the use of drugs. These range from opioid agonist treatment and the provision of sterile equipment to people who inject drugs, from take-home naloxone programs to drug control facilities. However, access to these measures is often insufficient, especially in some EU countries. According to experts, in Europe there is even a lack of judgment by individual governments on the functionality of these measures. Prevention is key: trainers exist in over 25 EU member states (and neighboring countries). Their action is supported by Xchange, the European register of prevention interventions.
Among the risks highlighted by the researchers is that of contracting infections such as viral hepatitis B and C (HVB and HCV) and HIV (HIV infections associated with drug use have decreased in the last decade, but concern remains that the low number of new infections is related to data collection problems rather than real improvement).
A recent EMCDDA review reveals that the use of nitrous oxide, or laughing gas, as a drug is also increasing in several EU Member States. For years on the market, this substance is associated with health risks, especially in episodic users (poisoning, burns and lung lesions and, in some cases, nerve damage from vitamin B12 deficiency).