US Drug Abuse by Region
Drug abuse is a problem everywhere in society- from types of drugs used, to amounts of drugs used, to ages and other demographics of those using drugs. In examining different regions, several factors show up. A recent study by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (2011) showed many interesting factors.
For instance, illicit drugs are popular on the West coast, in Colorado and in the Northeast. The South has the most smokers and the Midwest has the most binge drinkers. Vermont has the most drug use, with Colorado next in line, and Utah has the least amount of drug use.
As far as marijuana is concerned, Vermont leads the pack and also leads in the amount of teens that have smoked marijuana in the past month at 14.04%. Interestingly, the states where smoking marijuana is the most prevalent seem to think that smoking weed is not risky, but half of the people surveyed in Mississippi think it is risky.
Cocaine use is the highest in the nation’s capital, Washington D.C. with other users coming from the West, Northeast, and Colorado. And, illegal pain pill use was shown to be even more widespread than cocaine use – Oregon reported 6.37%, while Iowa was lowest at 3.62%.
As far as alcohol is concerned, Massachusetts takes the cake with 63% consuming alcohol in the last month. Not surprisingly, Utah is ranked the lowest in alcohol use. Binge drinking is very common in North and South Dakota as well as in Montana. Ironically, that region of the US indicated that they do not think binge drinking is very risky.
Tobacco/cigarette use is the most common in the South with West Virginia reported 38.46% of their residents using in the past month. However, the country as a whole is very aware of the risks associated with smoking-with California being the most aware and informed.
The Western half of the country is more addicted to alcohol, with the exception of Utah, and drug addiction is also more prevalent in the West vs. the East– although Vermont also ranks high. And teen drug addiction is fairly low overall: most states rank between just 2-3.6% minus a few.