Statistics on Substance Abuse: Understanding the Scope of Addiction

When addiction happens at home, you are facing a life-challenging situation. You need to seek help. Yet, as you are trying to understand how this happened and what can be done about it, consider a few key statistics on substance abuse. When you do, you will see just how worrisome the current trend is. At The Right Step, we are creating treatment plans that are helping people to avoid becoming statistics themselves.

Key Statistics on Substance Abuse

When you consider the wide range of statistics on substance abuse, it can be hard to grasp the numbers. Yet, men and women with addiction need to see what the true impact of drug use is on themselves and the world around them. The following are statistics on substance abuse shared by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

  • In 2018, 11.2 percent of people in the U.S. over the age of 12 admitted to using drugs in the previous month.
  • In 2018, 68,367 people died from drug overdoses.
  • That equates to a death mortality rate of 21.6 (drug overdose deaths per 100,000 people).
  • The mortality rate for overdoses related to opioid use was 14.6.
  • In heroin overdoses, the death mortality rate was 4.8.

Another key statistic is related to opioid overdoses. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that, in 2018, 67,000 people died from overdoses related to opioids. Additionally, almost 70 percent of all drug overdoses occurring that year had opioid involvement.

The World Health Organization offers additional statistics about the use of drugs:

  • Across the globe, 3.3 million people die from alcohol-related causes.
  • 31 million people around the world have drug use disorders of some type.
  • Additionally, 11 million people inject drugs of some type.
  • An estimated 1.3 million people have HIV and inject drugs.
  • An estimated 5.5 million have hepatitis C and inject drugs.

When you look at how far-reaching drug addiction is, it may become clear that you may benefit from some treatment and support as well.

What Can Be Done to Prevent the Worst Outcome?

You may be using drugs or alcohol and are worried about your future. Or, you could have a loved one that is falling into these statistics and ranges. What can you do? At The Right Step, the first thing you can do is seek out treatment. Our team can help to create significant changes and improvements in your future. We do this with a range of treatment programs.

For some people, it begins with medical drug detox, which is an opportunity for your body to flush away the toxins and drugs to reduce the impact of dependency and withdrawals. Many people then enter into residential drug treatment, which is a time to spend focused on healing and on your future. Our team is able to help you through a range of treatment programs in this process.

Your care can continue beyond this. We offer outpatient drug treatment, which is extremely helpful for some people. In addition, we offer an aftercare drug treatment program to help you move on with solid support. You may also benefit from a chronic relapse program that we offer if you have already tried rehab and did not find success in it. The bottom line here is that you are not alone.

Are You Facing Addiction in Your Home? The Right Step Can Help

These statistics on substance abuse can seem worrisome. If you have a loved one that is using drugs and alcohol or you are using yourself, do not wait for things to worsen. Instead, take action by reaching out for immediate help. When you do, you will quickly learn there are tools and programs that you can use to help yourself. Call our team at The Right Step at 17135283709 to learn more about the options available to you.

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