The opioid crisis is much worse in the United States than in other countries

 
Related

Paella, the Best Way to Enjoy a Gastronomic Tour of Valencia

About everything
528 points

Monstera Deliciosa: This fruit either burns your throat or tastes like a tropical medley.

About everything
1722 points



Most recent

Platos irresistibles en The Cooper Lounge Bar

Mariana Ortiz
6 points

¿Cómo afecta la inteligencia artificial a la ciberseguridad?

Luisa Fernanda Rozo
18 points

Colombia se adapta con éxito al boom del comercio electrónico mediante innovación tecnológica

Mariana Ortiz
22 points

Colombia, pionera en rehabilitación con robótica

Prensa
54 points

¿Por qué América Latina rechaza la hipocresía de Occidente?, entrevista exclusiva con Gustavo Petro

Raymundo Rivera Lopeztiana
14 points

Turismo a la Antártida

Viajes y Noticias
6 points

¿Qué pasa en la FIDUPREVISORA?

Pablo Emilio Obando Acosta
84 points

4 razones para hacer gárgaras con agua y sal

Tip Diario
6 points

AC by Marriott Santa Marta: Sabores internacionales con toques autóctonos

Mariana Ortiz
6 points

EEUU: La lucha de los obreros del automóvil

El Ímpetu
20 points
SHARE
TWEET
In a speech on Thursday at the White House, President Donald Trump declared the opioid crisis a national health emergency. "The fact is, this is a worldwide problem," he said.

The opioid crisis is much worse in the United States than in other countries

That might be so, but the crisis is much worse in the United States than in other countries.

According to recent data from the UN, America has around 4 percent of the world's population but about 27 percent of the world's drug overdose deaths. Statista charted the results found by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC):

The US also leads the world in consuming opioids. For example, Americans are prescribed about six times as many opioids per capita as are citizens of Portugal and France.

The reasons, says Dr. Benedikt Fischer, senior scientist at University of Toronto's Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, are political as well as cultural. "In North America, in our society, we treat our ailments primarily through drugs," he says. In European countries, by contrast, "physicians think a lot more about what are the causes behind certain symptoms and are there things other than drugs we can apply here."

Fischer also says the aggressive marketing by pharmaceutical companies in the United States is also a factor. "There are only two countries in the world in which direct-to-consumer advertising is allowed and that's in the United States and New Zealand." Other countries have much tighter restrictions on pharmaceutical marketing.

The public healthcare systems in other countries also play a role, Fischer says. "In many countries, you only have certain physicians allowed to prescribe [opioids]. The regulated dosing or length of prescriptions are different. A lot of the potent opioids are only used in hospital settings."

At this point, says Fischer, the United States has an acute problem on its hands. It can impose more regulations on prescription painkillers, but patients will likely turn to illegal substitutes like heroin or fentanyl.

"We're really at a point where we're not exactly sure [if it's] better right now to further restrict medical opioid supplies or leave them at a certain point until we can deal with all the people that are dependent on them."

Fuente: wlrn.org
SHARE
TWEET
To comment you must log in with your account or sign up!
Featured content