Prevalence and demographic factors of stimulant use.
The use of stimulants for recreation purposes has increased considerably during the 20th century. Cocaine was first considered to be a drug of potential abuse during the First World War but was only perceived as a serious threat when it became widely used in socially and economically deprived urban areas of the USA in the 1980s. Use of amphetamines was common among certain occupational groups as a means of remaining alert until the 1950s, when they were seen to be abused by a small minority of recreational users. Controls were then introduced in most developed countries. The public health issue of stimulant use is that of finding a balance between the prevention of serious social or personal harm caused by abuse of these drugs while not impeding their beneficial use.
Pickering
H
H
Department of Psychiatry, Charing Cross and Westminster Medical School, University of London, UK.
Stimson
G V
GV
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000662:Amphetamines / Q000009:adverse effects; D003042:Cocaine / Q000009:adverse effects; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004335:Drug and Narcotic Control / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D005060:Europe / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000145:classification / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology
D000662:Amphetamines; D003042:Cocaine