WHO: Teen Drug Use Up in Europe
S T O C K H O L M, Sweden, Feb. 20 -- Abuse of alcohol and illicitdrugs by teens has increased sharply in manyEuropean countries in the last five years, according to a WorldHealth Organization (WHO) report obtained by Reuters today.
The European School Survey Project on Alcohol and OtherDrugs (ESPAD), due to be published later today, found thatillicit drug use rose in almost all the 30 European countriessurveyed, but fell in Britain and Ireland.
Still, Britons remained Europe's worst teenage drug users,with 36 percent of 15 and 16 year olds having dabbled in onedrug or other by 1999. That compares to 42 percent in 1995.
Irish drug use also dropped sharply to 32 percent in 1999from 37 percent, while the Czech Republic overtook Ireland,moving into second place as its proportion of children who hadtried drugs rocketed to 35 percent from 23 percent.
Poles Take to Pot
A large increase in the number of children who had usedcannabis was the main reason for the Czech rise, the study said.Cannabis use also jumped in Poland, making Polish teenagersEurope's equal biggest marijuana smokers alongside Britons.
Especially worrying was an increase in binge drinking,especially in Britain, Denmark, Ireland and Poland, the studysaid. More than 30 percent of schoolchildren in those countriesreported binge drinking — defined as five drinks in a row — three or more times in the last month.
Officials said binge drinking was a particular problembecause even if overall drinking fell, children were atparticular risk when very drunk to dangers such as alcoholpoisoning, accidents and unwanted sex.
"Both alcohol and illicit drug use have increased markedlyin many ESPAD countries, especially in the central and easternparts of Europe," the report said.
"However, the high prevalence countries are still mainly tobe found in the Western parts."
Tobacco smoking was well established by the mid-teens inmost countries and showed few signs of diminishing since theprevious ESPAD survey in 1995, the study said.
