According to a new study Ten percent of U.S. adults have abused drugs or become physically dependent on drugs.
Common drugs of abuse include marijuana, cocaine and amphetamines and most with drug problems do not seek treatment.
This research was lead by — Dr. Wilson M. Compton of the U.S. Institute on Drug Abuse .
Scientists gathered data by telephone interviews with nearly people in 2001 and 2002 and found that that 10.3 percent of U.S. adults abused drugs at some point in their lifetimes. Nearly 2.6% had ever been physically dependent on drugs.
Men were more likely than women to abuse drugs and approximately 13.8 percent of men and 7.1 percent of women reported abusing drugs at some point in their lives. On average, people were nearly 20 years old when they began abusing drugs and nearly two years older when they became physically dependent on drugs.
Researchers say except for a few cases, the drug abuse and dependence was usually related to alcohol use disorders, nicotine dependence and mood, anxiety and personality disorders.
It was also found by researchers that — 81 percent who reported drug abuse sought help compared with 37.9 percent of those who reported drug dependence.
The report is published in May’s edition of the Archives of General Psychiatry.
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