Yesterday, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) released its 2017 World Drug Report. The extensive document reads like a tell-all book regarding the production, distribution, and consumption of illegal substances on a global scale.
The report this year outlined the grim news related to the massive synthetic drug crisis that exists in our world today, stating that “Opioids were the most harmful drug type and accounted for 70 per cent of the negative health impact associated with drug use disorders worldwide.”
According to the report, China has become a world-leader in synthetic drug manufacturing, including laboratory-made opioids like Fentanyl.
Last year, the Public Health Agency of Canada estimated that 2,458 Canadians died of opioid overdoses. This news comes on the heels of statements made by top doctors in Canada that cannabis can reduce opioid consumption.
In the United States, the numbers for the opioid epidemic are significantly greater, with overdose deaths rising threefold between 1999 and 2014. Opioid mortality in the U.S. rose 72 percent between 2014 and 2015, taking an estimated 59,000 lives in 2016.