Håvard Vallstad (18) says he knows about illegal drug use at parties. He has also been offered cocaine himself. – I am very against drugs and do not want to be part of it. He describes those who use drugs at parties as “ordinary students” – They have nothing to struggle with. Maybe someone feels pressured? Vallstad attends Bodø upper secondary school together with fellow students Guro Aase Solbakk (19) and Henriette Halvorsen (18). On Thursday, FHI presented updated 2022 figures on Norwegian drug use. It shows that the vast majority of young people do not use drugs at all. In the annual survey that Statistics Norway has carried out on behalf of FHI, 4.7 per cent of respondents between the ages of 16 and 30 answer that they have used cocaine in the past year. In comparison, only 2.2 per cent answered that they had done the same in 2020. The main findings from the report Cannabis is the most widely used illegal drug in Norway. One in four have tried cannabis in their lifetime, while around 5 per cent say they have used cannabis in the last 12 months. Recent cannabis use – last year or last month – is most prevalent in the youngest age groups. Cannabis use among young adults has been stable in recent years. In contrast to previous years, there were small differences between men and women in the use of cannabis in 2022. The central stimulants cocaine, ecstasy/MDMA and amphetamines are the most used illegal drugs after cannabis. These substances are also most prevalent among men and in the youngest age groups. The use of cocaine among young adults has increased somewhat in recent years. From 2012 until 2022, 20,033 people aged 16–64 answered questions about the use of illegal drugs. – Some are probably curious, and opt out of alcohol. Other drugs can make you feel better and make you want to try it again, says Halvorsen. Uniformed police happened to stop by Bodø high school to talk to students about Russian time, at the same time that news was there to talk to the students. Photo: Kåre Riibe Ramskjell / news Solbakk says she is in no way tempted to try cocaine. – I think it’s very scary. You don’t know how much you take. And if you take too much it can be very harmful to your life. The experiences of the students in Bodø are not unique. It is also shared to a large extent at Norway’s largest upper secondary school in Sandefjord. There, Russian President Noah Allerød says that cocaine has almost become normalized among the graduating students. That could make more people feel pressure to test for illegal drugs, Allerød believes. – If you’re the only one in the class who doesn’t kick a football, you’ll want to join in the game. Frøya Celius of the Solidarity Committee at the school agrees with that. – There is no open pressure of the type “Come on – take it”. But when everyone else takes it, you can quickly feel like the odd one out. Russian president Noah Allerød, Frøya Celius, Nora Fjeld Lycke Noah and Bamo Kalik Hamid all go to Sandefjord high school. They say that cocaine use among young people is more normalized now than before – but that the pendulum is about to turn. Photo: Vegard Lilleås / news Nevertheless, the students in Sandefjord have seen a change in attitude among their fellow students – and perhaps not in the direction one would think. – It has seemed a bit cool to talk about having taken cocaine, but after the summer we feel that it is more shameful. It’s not so cool anymore, says Allerød. But it is not unproblematic, according to the students. – Now I feel that people do more in secret. It’s actually even worse. That you think that you are doing it and maybe have a problem. Principal Harald Møller at Sandefjord upper secondary school thinks it is sad to hear that students experience peer pressure when it comes to drug use. Photo: Vegard Lilleås / news Principal Harald Møller likes the young people to reflect on drug use. – At the same time, it is a bit sad to hear that there is such strong peer pressure. – I think that for many young people there is one thing that is more important than anything else in life, and that is to belong. Cocaine use among young people is increasing After cannabis, it is stimulants such as cocaine, amphetamines and ecstasy/MDMA that most Norwegians report having used. Between 5 and 7 percent state that they have used some of these drugs at one time or another. Cocaine was the stimulant drug that most (2 per cent) reported having used in the last 12 months. And if you look at the development of these three groups of drugs, use has remained stable over the last ten years – apart from the use of cocaine – which is increasing in the age group 16–30 years. Thomas Anton Sandøy is a researcher at the department for drugs and tobacco at FHI. He says the broad strokes show that Norwegians’ drug use remains stable. – We see a large degree of stability in the numbers, and do not see any big jumps linked to individual years. Nor has FHI looked at geographical differences around the country. – But we know from previous surveys that the use of cannabis is most widespread in densely built-up areas and mostly in Oslo. We have seen greater use there than in the rest of the country. Slight increase in cocaine use among young people After cannabis, it is stimulants such as cocaine, amphetamines and ecstasy/MDMA that most Norwegians report having used. The use of cocaine increases slightly in 2022 in the age group from 16 to 30 years. This is shown by new drug figures from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health. Photo: 007 David Parry / Medicimage And it is only in the youngest group, between the ages of 16 and 30, that you see a slight increase in the use of cocaine. 4.7 per cent of respondents in this age group answered that they had used cocaine during the last 12 months. The figure in 2021 was 3.4 per cent, and 2.2 per cent in 2020. FHI writes that the number who had stated such use was low, and that changes from year to year must be interpreted with caution. Cocaine was the central stimulant that most people (2 per cent) reported having used in the past 12 months. Cannabis is still the most used As in previous years, cannabis is by far the most widely used illegal drug in Norway – and in Europe in general. According to FHI, the use of the drug has been relatively stable over the past ten years. 27 percent state that they have used cannabis at one time or another during their lives. 5.5 percent say they have used cannabis in the past 12 months. 2.4 percent answered that they had used cannabis in the last four weeks. The average age of onset of cannabis use was 19 years, according to the survey. Use is increasing among women In contrast to previous years, use by men and women is approaching when it comes to cannabis. The proportion of women who state that they have used cannabis in the past 12 months has risen from 1.9 per cent in 2021 to 4.9 per cent in 2022. At the same time, use by men has remained stable at around 6 per cent in the same period. – Usually there is a larger proportion of men who state cannabis use, but in 2022 this difference was much smaller. It is in line with international research, which shows that women and men are approaching each other when it comes to cannabis use, says Sandøy in FHI. – Whether this is the case in Norway is a little too early to say yet, but the year 2022 stood out, he adds.
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Cocaine use among young adults is increasing – cannabis is still the most used – news Nordland
