title: Drug addiction in China.
abstract: Drug addiction in China began with the importation of Indian opium by the British in the 16th century and brought severe social and health problems. While drug abuse abated following the establishment of People's Republic of China, modernization and Westernization in the 1980s led to the reemergence of this problem. Drug abuse in China became epidemic, facilitating the spread of HIV/AIDS. The Chinese government has made great efforts to address these problems, focusing both on treatments of drug addiction and on harm-reduction programs. Although the new trends of drug addiction in China pose great public health challenges, these government interventions are likely to successfully stem the problem of drug abuse in the future.
authors.affiliation: National Institute on Drug Dependence, Peking University, Beijing, China. linlu@bjmu.edu.cnc
authors.forename: Lin
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.forename: Xi
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000453:epidemiology; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000635:transmission; D006291:Health Policy; D006801:Humans; D013287:Illicit Drugs / Q000009:adverse effects; D007880:Legislation, Drug; D008297:Male; D008516:Medicine, Chinese Traditional; D008691:Methadone / Q000627:therapeutic use; D009293:Opioid-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology; D009892:Opium / Q000009:adverse effects; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000639:trends; D000074606:Smoking Prevention; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D016320:Substance Abuse Treatment Centers; D015819:Substance Abuse, Intravenous / Q000453:epidemiology; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000534:rehabilitation / Q000628:therapy
chemical_list: D013287:Illicit Drugs; D009892:Opium; D008691:Methadone