Abstract
Recreational drugs are an important part of the Australian lifestyle. The 2004 national survey on drugs (NDSHS 2005a) shows that the majority of Australians consume alcohol on a regular basis, one fifth of the population uses tobacco regularly and two out of five people have used some illicit drug at some point in their lives (Fig. 3.1). The alcohol and tobacco industries are significant contributors to the Australian economy in terms of employment and tax revenue. In 2004–2005, some AUD11.8 billion was received by the Australian Government in alcohol and tobacco taxes (AIHW 2007).
In 2002, about 205,000 Australian secondary school students aged 12–17 were smokers. If they all continue to smoke, about half will die from smoking-related diseases.(How to treat, Australian Doctor Newspaper, 10 March 2006)
Australia’s binge-drinking culture is a ‘ticking time bomb’ threatening to overload the public health system within decades, health experts have warned.(The Age, 5 May 2007)
More than 40,000 children live in a house where an adult uses cannabis daily, and more than 14,000 live in a household with an adult using ice, or crystal methamphetamine.(Australian National Council on Drugs, 21 May 2007)
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Notes
- 1.
Loss in productivity in this context refers to a reduction in the size of the available workforce, absenteeism and reduced on-the-job productivity as a result of drug-attributable morbidity and mortality.
- 2.
Tangible costs result from loss in productive capacity, medical expenses, road accidents and crime costs associated with policing, courts, prisons, customs etc. Intangible costs are associated with loss of life, and pain and suffering. Note that the monetary value attributed to non-pecuniary costs can be argued to be subjective.
- 3.
One disability-adjusted life year is a lost year of “healthy” life and is calculated as a combination of years of life lost due to premature mortality and equivalent “healthy” years of life lost due to disability (WHO 2007).
- 4.
The three most recent surveys have been conducted by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW).
- 5.
For the first time the 2004 survey included persons aged 12 and older.
- 6.
The respective response rates for the eight surveys are 33%, 43%, 47%, 52%, 57%, 56% and 50% and 46%. The decline in the later years is attributed mainly to the sensitive nature of questions on drug use, the length of the questionnaire and a general decline in response rates in such market research surveys.
- 7.
Imbalances arise due to various factors such as the underrepresentation of some regions, size of households, age, gender and the interview methods.
- 8.
Much of the difference in the definition of bingeing has been driven by variations in the units of measurement of alcoholic beverages and in other instances, the number of drinks. A problematic feature of these definitions is that neither the duration of an occasion nor the drink sizes and strengths are defined. A similar dispute prevails over the definition of moderate drinking.
- 9.
In Australia, the NHMRC recommends guidelines for the maximum number of standard drinks to be consumed in order to minimise risks in the short and long terms and maximise any potential health benefits. They indicate three risk levels—low, medium and high—based on both the amount (i.e. number of standard drinks consumed on any one day) and frequency of alcohol consumption. These definitions also vary with respect to the risks of harm in the short and long terms. Table B.1 in Appendix B depicts the drinking guidelines as set by the NHMRC. According to the 2004 NDSHS, about 10 % of Australians consume alcohol in a way considered risky or a high risk to health in the long term and about one third put themselves at risk of alcohol-related harm in the short term (NDSHS 2005b).
- 10.
One possible source of measurement error in grouping alcoholic beverages by types is that respondents in the 1998 and 2001 surveys were offered a more disaggregated set of options with regard to the beverages they consumed in contrast to earlier surveys that contained fewer choices. It is to be noted that some alcoholic drinks such as pre-mixed beverages have become popular only in recent years.
- 11.
Cigarette use accounts for approximately 98 % of tobacco consumed in Australia (NDARC 2006b).
- 12.
The key question used from the survey is “how often (and how many), if at all, do you now smoke cigarettes?”.
- 13.
An absolute prohibition was imposed on the medicinal use of heroin in the early 1950s.
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Srivastava, P.R. (2013). An Overview of Recreational Drug Consumption in Australia. In: Recreational Drug Consumption. Developments in Health Economics and Public Policy, vol 11. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-02405-9_3
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