by MGP
Drug alarm in Italy with young people increasingly attracted to narcotic substances consumed at increasingly younger ages. Access to the emergency room related to drugs increased by 5% compared to 2022 in the Bel Paese, as did the involvement of minors in the production, trafficking and illicit possession of narcotic substances. This is what emerges from the annual report to Parliament on the phenomenon of drug addiction in Italy in 2024. Also shining a spotlight on the phenomenon is Amelia’s Comunità Incontro Onlus which, on the occasion of the World Day against Drugs on 26 June, released its own commercial social channels: «What is worrying – they explain from the Community – is the significant tendency towards the consumption of psychoactive substances found in the 12-19 age group. Adolescents show a considerable increase in the use of substances of all types, increasingly experimenting with synthetic opioids obtained easily on the market but also via the internet.”
Drug alarm in Italy and boom among students “The scenario of the diffusion and consumption of narcotic and psychotropic substances in Italy is characterized, in 2023, by increasing trends: in relation to both consumption and criminal crimes”, explains a note from the Department for Anti-Drug Policies. The report to Parliament then highlights «the growth in the consumption of psychoactive substances among young people between 15 and 19 years old compared to the previous year: almost 960 thousand, equal to 39% of the student population, report having consumed an illegal substance at least once once in a lifetime and over 680 thousand (28%) in the last year. The percentages of students who report having used at least once during the year are: cocaine from 1.8% to 2.2%, stimulants from 2.1% to 2.9%, hallucinogens from 1.6 % to 2% and New psychoactive substances from 5.8% to 6.4%. Cannabis remains the substance most used by young people, but sees a decrease in prevalence compared to 2022 (22.2% versus 23.7%)”. Also in Italy, there is also an increase in anti-drug operations and seizures by the police forces. «Along with the increase in consumption, we can also observe the involvement of minors in the production, trafficking and illicit possession of narcotic substances: the number of minors reported to the Judicial Authority for drug-related criminal offenses has seen a 10% increase.” Drug-related visits to the emergency room also increased by 5% compared to 2022.
New psychoactive substances The alarm in Italy is also high for new psychoactive substances: “During 2023, 48 new narcotic substances were included in the ministerial tables – it emerges again from the Report to Parliament -. The consumption of NSP, growing after the pandemic, mainly concerns young people, more exposed to this particular market. In 2023, 160 thousand 15-19 year olds reported having consumed at least one during the year, equal to 6.4% of the student population”.
Community Meeting Amelia The use of substances among very young people is worrying in the area. «It is necessary to stop this trend with targeted interventions to identify conditions of risk and vulnerability – states the head of the Comunità Incontro Amelia structure, Giampaolo Nicolasi – as well as inform, raise awareness and fight fake news by adopting effective forms of communication that can provide the necessary tools to know the real risks associated with addictions. Wrong or misleading information misleads our young people, leading them inexorably towards addictions or the unconscious and occasional intake of lethal substances, as in the case of fentanyl which has recently hit the headlines in the local news”. This year, on the occasion of the International Day against Drugs, the Comunità Incontro Onlus has released an advert on social channels to raise awareness and make the public and young people responsible about the danger of fake news: «because the first form of prevention against addictions is correct information.” In the video, shot in recent days in Molino Silla, some young people involved in the recovery process appear in the role of testimonials who took turns to ‘debunk’ the main false myths about substances and behavioral addictions.
