Alcohol rated more harmful than heroin
12 November 2010
UK drug experts have branded alcohol the most harmful drug to the individual and society, according to an analysis reported in the journal The Lancet (2010; 376: 1558-65).
The Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs scored 20 drugs on a scale of 0 to 100 according to the harm they cause to individuals and to other people. The Committee used 16 criteria: 9 related to harm to the individual and 7 related to the harm to other people.
Overall, alcohol was the most harmful drug, with a score of 72, followed by heroin (55) and crack cocaine (54). For an individual, heroin, crack cocaine and methamphetamine were the most harmful drugs, with alcohol, heroin and crack cocaine the most harmful to others.
"Our findings lend support to previous work in the UK and the Netherlands confirming that the present drug classification systems have little correlation to the evidence of harm", the authors said.
Last Reviewed: 12 November 2010
- Nutt DJ, King LA, Phillips LD; Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs. Drug harms in the UK: a multicriteria decision analysis. Lancet 2010; 376: 1558-65. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(10)61462-6. [Epub 2010 Oct 29]. http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736%2810%2961462-6/abstract (accessed 12 Nov 2010).
