DRUG EXPERIMENTATION INCREASES IN FINLAND

Study Says One in Eight Finns Have Used a Drug Sometime in Their Lives

A study released by the Development and Research Centre for Welfare and
Health (STAKES) reveals that 12% of Finns have used an illegal drug at some
time in their lives. Ten years ago the corresponding figure was five percent.

The increase in drug experimentation has been greatest among young adults
aged 20 - 29. One in three men and one in four women in that age group have
tried cannabis.

Most of those with some experience with drugs are not regular users: only
five percent of men and two percent of the women had used a drug in the
past month.

A key message of the survey is that while experimentation with drugs has
grown, regular use has remained fairly stable.

Drug use appears to focus on young age groups. There are no indications
that many older Finns would be trying an illegal drug for the first time.

According to researchers Pekka Hakkarainen and Leena Metso, drug use among
young people in Finland is still mainly occasional, limited to one or a few
occasions.

There is a strong correlation between drug use and where a person lives. In
the Helsinki region nearly one in four say that they have tried cannabis,
whereas the figure is just a few percent in rural areas. The use of
cannabis is most common among students.

Another significant development is the increase in use of amphetamine and
ecstasy among those under the age of 40. Four percent said that they had
used amphetamine, and three percent said that they had used ecstasy.

In the 20 - 29 age group, eight percent of men and four percent of women
said that they had tried amphetamine. With ecstasy the figures were eight
and three percent respectively.

There were also more reports about the use of cocaine. Researchers see this
as an indication of the emergence of a party drug culture in Finland.

Finland is currently experiencing a second drug wave, which involves a rise
in the use of amphetamines and ecstasy - drugs which do not have much
appeal for older users.

"It seems that the drug wave of the 1990s attracted experimenters mainly
from the younger age groups. First experiments with drugs were made at the
average age of 18", the researchers say.

The study also found that about half of respondents under the age of 30
personally know people who use an illegal drug. Nearly an equal amount say
that they have been offered drugs.

The latest survey on drug use was conducted last autumn. A random sampling
of 4,053 Finns aged 15 to 69 were sent questionnaires, and 63% responded.

STAKES notes that the questionnaire did not reach many hard-core addicts,
many of whom do not have a permanent address. Also, questionnaires were not
sent to prisons or other closed institutions.

Experts estimate that there are between 11,000 and 14,000 "problem users"
of amphetamines or heroin.