Cheap drugs spark rise in cocaine use

Drug workers have reported a rise in the number of teenagers seeking help for cocaine addiction.

Dealers targeting youngsters with cheap drugs are being blamed for the increase.

Drug charity DrugScope said dealers were offering "luxury" and "economy" cocaine, putting the drug within reach of younger people such as students and others on low incomes.

The economy version, at about £30 a gram, is more heavily adulterated with additives while the higher quality grade, at £50 a gram, is offered to more affluent customers.

Anecdotal evidence from DrugScope's annual survey of drug workers showed younger and younger people are asking for help with a cocaine problem.

A DrugScope spokeswoman said: "One of the things that came up over and over again was that the age of cocaine use amongst clients was going down."

She added: "We are not claiming that there has been a massive increase in cocaine use, but we are worried that there appear to be some young people abusing cocaine alongside other substances such as cannabis, Ecstasy and alcohol."

A worker at a Manchester drugs charity told the survey: "We are seeing the age of first use and of problem use dropping. The proliferation of cocaine is going mental.

"We are seeing many young people start using at 15 and getting into problems when they are 18."

The 2007 Street Drug Trends poll claimed that cocaine use was no longer restricted to the rich, but at the same time the drug has not completely lost the "glamorous" associations of the past.

The spokeswoman said: "Many users appear unconcerned by the drug's class A status and do not associate the drug with its serious health risks that include heart problems, mental ill health and the potential for dependency."

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