Stress and unemployment increase drug use in Porto

These are some of the conclusions of analyzes of wastewater from 88 cities, in 24 countries, carried out by the European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction. The study, which will be presented this Wednesday, shows that cocaine use continues to increase across Europe and warns of the growing popularity of ketamine as a recreational drug.

To JN, Observatório analyst João Matias explains that Porto “is in the middle of the table” and, therefore, very far from the main European cities in terms of cocaine consumption. It warns, however, that, compared to previous years, analyzes of wastewater samples, collected between March and May of last year, reveal that more and more Porto residents are using this drug, as well as cannabis. “The increase in cocaine consumption in Porto follows the European trend of the last five years”, he guarantees.

In Lisbon, says the expert, there has been a decrease in the consumption of ecstasy/MDMA, but the Portuguese capital remains among the ten cities where the population most uses drugs. For João Matias, these data, “more than worrying, are a warning”. “The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, with the increase in stress and unemployment, influences consumption. On the other hand, drugs are available everywhere and affect everyone. I think it’s difficult to go back to the 80s heroin pandemic [do século XX]but we need to be careful”, he emphasizes.