Did you know?
- 15% of high schoolers report using illicit drugs, according to the Centers for Disease Control
- 48.5 million (16.7%) Americans (aged 12 and older) battled a substance use disorder in the past year.
- 10.2% of Americans 12 and older had an alcohol use disorder in the past year.
- About 27.2 million Americans 12 or older (9.7%) reported battling a drug use disorder in the past year.
- That same year, 7.5 million (2.7%) of Americans 12 and older struggled with both alcohol and drug use disorders simultaneously.
- 20.4 million American adults (7.9%) suffered from both a mental health disorder and a substance use disorder, or co-occurring disorders in the past year.
- About 105,000 people in the U.S. died from drug-involved overdoses in 2023, including illicit drugs and prescription opioids.
- The synthetic opioid fentanyl is 100 times more potent than morphine and 50 times more potent than heroin and is responsible for most overdose deaths.
- About 1 in 11 people who regularly use marijuana (cannabis) meet the criteria for a cannabis use disorder.
- Methamphetamines may damage cells and structures within the brain that can cause long-term problems with emotion and memory.
- Alcohol is the substance most frequently involved in deadly car crashes. Nearly one person died every 52 minutes from drunk driving crashes in 2019.
- The long-term health effects of cigarette smoking are responsible for more than 480,000 deaths per year.
Facts matter
Knowing the data and understanding the impact of substance use in this country is key to prevention. Education and awareness help protect the public, our workforce and our youth from the risks associated with substance use and addiction.
National Drug and Alcohol Facts Week, which runs from March 17- 23, is a chance to have an important conversation about the science of alcohol and drug use—how it affects the brain and body, and how it may lead to addiction. By communicating the long-term, harmful effects on the brain from using alcohol and drugs, The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) seeks to educate all of us about the importance of prevention.
While NIDA created NDAFW with the mission of increasing awareness among our youth, especially, this weeklong campaign provides an opportunity to bring together scientists, students, educators, healthcare providers and community partners to address drug and alcohol use in communities nationwide.
Be sure to mark your calendars as we invite all to participate in National Drugs and Alcohol Facts Week. Visit National Drug and Alcohol Facts Week® (NDAFW) | National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) (nih.gov) for a map of events in your area, to schedule an event and to find resources to educate people in your community or workplace.
Find out how aware you are of your drug and alcohol facts and trends by taking the National Drug & Alcohol IQ Challenge Quiz