CHEAP DRUGS ATTRACT YOUNG USERS

A DROP in cocaine prices has led to a surge in teenagers and young people
experimenting with the drug, a counselling group has warned.

While cannabis remains the most commonly used drug among referrals to the
Belfast-based Forum for Action on Substance Abuse (Fasa), there has been
steady rise in those seeking help for dependency on harder drugs.

Darren Whiteside, an education team leader with Fasa, said he attributes
cheap cocaine costs and easy accessibility to increased usage of the Class
A drug.

A gram of cocaine can cost as little as UKP40 in Belfast - a year ago the
same amount was at least UKP60, he said.

Meanwhile, anti-depressant prescription drugs such as diazepam can be
bought illegally for as little as 20p, less than half the 'street price' of
50p six months ago.

"The dealers just don't care, they will sell their drugs to anyone no
matter what age they are," Mr Whiteside said.

"Cocaine is mainly used by people in their twenties and thirties but as the
price goes down the age of those experimenting with it is becoming lower.
At the moment it is very cheap to buy but the price can fluctuate when it
comes to the drug's purity.

"I know of 15 year-old girl who is currently using our service because of
her dependency on cocaine, ecstasy and prescription drugs."

The development comes as new government figures reveal that more than one
in four adults across Ireland have used illegal drugs at some point in
their life.

Cannabis was the most commonly used drug - with one in four adults
admitting to experimentations - followed by ecstasy, 'poppers', LSD,
amphetamines and cocaine.

More men than women used illegal drugs, according to the cross-border
questionnaire of almost 7,000 people.

But lifetime antidepressant use among women was much greater (28 per cent)
than men (13 per cent).

Cocaine usage has more than doubled among those questioned.

In December The Irish News revealed that a cocaine audit was to begin in
the Accident and Emergency department of Northern Ireland's biggest hospital.

Doctors at the Royal Victoria hospital in Belfast ordered the investigation
following a increase in the number of patients being treated with symptoms
linked to the drug.

Heart problems, severe aggression and high blood pressure are among the
cocaine-related conditions being dealt with on an almost daily basis at the
Royal's A&E department - with a significant increase in cases at weekends,
according to medics.

Dr Richard Wilson, an A&E consultant at the Royal, warned that it was "only
a matter of time" before a young person dies from cocaine usage.