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50,000 Londoners addicted to crack

James Meikle

Age group of those injecting or smoking the drug ranges from 15 to 44: study

LONDON: Almost 50,000 Londoners are addicted to crack cocaine, according to a study published on Monday. It suggests that 46,000 15-44-year-olds are injecting or smoking the drug. That amounts to more than one per cent of the age group. Previous estimates had put the addiction level at almost a quarter that number.

The re-evaluation of the addiction carries serious implications for crime and health. Offenders are known to spend as much as £500 a week on the habit, while in some police stations up to one in five arrests are said to be related to crack use. There are also increased risks among users of psychiatric problems, such as paranoia and depression, and links to violent behaviour.

Blood-borne diseases

Injecting the drug exposes users to the threat of blood-borne infections such as HIV and Hepatitis C. An estimated three in five users also take opiates such as heroin, according to the authors of a report published online by the Society for the Study of Addiction.

The figures, from researchers at Imperial College London and Bristol University, are far higher than previously suggested. The 2001-02 British Crime Survey, based on 40,000 interviews, concluded that there were 13,600 users in London, 0.3 p.c. of the relevant population, and 58,000 (0.2 p.c.) in England and Wales. In the new research, figures were compiled from several sources for 12 London boroughs, including the numbers of people in specialist drug treatment, those arrested or using accident and emergency services and population surveys.

Matthew Hickman of Imperial College London said: ``Although crack cocaine has been a cause of concern in many countries since the 1980s, there has not been the predicted epidemic across the U.K. until now.'' —

© Guardian Newspapers Limited 2004

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