Heroin Addiction Facts and Statistics
Although heroin falls in and out of "favor" within the drug community, it is still a highly relevant problem for law enforcement and drug rehab professionals around the country. Heroin addiction is an insidious disease that can tear apart the ties that bind families, and bring about considerable physical and mental health issues for those who become dependent on the drug.
The following are facts and statistics that paint a picture of the current state of heroin addiction. The numbers may be shocking, but they are absolutely essential knowledge if one is to understand the depth of the problem facing our young people and our society as a whole.
Heroin Addiction Facts and Statistics
- It is currently believed that over 600,000 people in the United States need heroin rehab treatment for their addiction but are not getting the professional help they need.
- While individuals over the age of 30 continue to make up the majority of heroin addicts in the United States, the fast growing heroin demographic is among young people age 17-21.
- On average, a heroin addict will spend anywhere from $100 - $200 to support their drug habit.
- An astounding 3.5 million people in the United States alone claim to have taken heroin at least once.
- The past five years have seen a consistent year-over-year increase in emergency room visits related to heroin of 10% - 15%.
- In more hopeful news, a recent survey of high school juniors and seniors found that 78% felt that heroin was "too great a risk" to try.
- Three quarters of all heroin brought into the United States comes from South America and Mexico (with South America making up the majority of this amount)
- 10% of the 2,000,000 people who take heroin every year in the United States actually use the drug habitually (approximately 220,000)
- Of the more than 4,000 people who died of a heroin-related overdose in 2006, almost 80% came as a result of complications due to combining heroin with alcohol or other drugs.
- Nearly 15% of all drug related emergency room visits come as a result of heroin use.
Help for Those with a Heroin Addiction
Individuals who are suffering from a heroin addiction are not going to be able to stop using on their own. They need professional help. This vital lifeline comes in the form of heroin addiction rehab. Drug rehab programs that work with heroin addicts help these individuals overcome the physical and psychological elements of the condition. The individual is given a chance to detoxify from the drug as well as learn the behavioral skills necessary to function in the "outside world" without heroin.
Michael's House is a residential drug treatment facility on-par with the finest institutions in the country. Located in Palm Springs, California Michael's House provides comprehensive treatment for those individuals who are suffering from heroin addiction through a unique combination of traditional healing techniques and cutting edge rehab methodologies. Contact Michael's House today at for more information.
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