So whats the most harmful drug then?

[piggynose]

Two former government drug advisers have said that alcohol causes greater overall harm to individuals
and society than heroin or crack cocaine. Professor David Nutt and Dr Les King are among a group of experts
who analysed the harm done by different drugs in a variety of areas, including damage to health, crime
and the economic cost of addiction. Here’s our home editor Mark Easton. Almost exactly a year after being
sacked from his role as chair of the government’s advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, Professor David
Nutt is courting controversy again with a paper that argues the UK’s drug classification system bears little
relation to the relative harms of drugs. Published in The Lancet, the research finds that overall alcohol is the
most harmful drug with heroin and crack in second and third places. Cocaine and tobacco emerge as almost
equally harmful, and ecstasy and LSD, both class A drugs, are among the least damaging in terms of harms
to the individual and wider society. The analysis was conducted by the Independent Scientific Committee
on Drugs, a group founded by Professor Nutt and six scientists who resigned their positions as government
advisers following his dismissal last year.

[squarebear]

Seeing as most of the posts regarding violence in the Law section start with "I was out drinking when...", I would have to agree.

[Daniela36]

Exactly squarebear............
or, 'I can't remember how it happened, I was drunk............'
or worse still, 'I can't even remember getting home'!

[Sqad]

Depends what you mean by "harmful?" Harmful to the drug taker?....to his family?....to society? .....harmful to the coffers of the NHS?

Without a doubt in my opinion ...........alcohol.

[andy-hughes]

it's simple - the evidence is overwhelming - alcohol is a poisonous blight on our society.

Yes, some people 'drink responsibily' - but the same can be said for any drug use.

We find ourselves in a no-win situation where alcohol is both socially acceptable, and in terms of tax and duty, a financial necessity for the government.

No party who ever wished to be in power would sanction the ban of alcohol, or the vocifourous fight against its misuse that other drugs attract.

We are stuck with it, and meanwhile the NHS and society as a whole continues to pay the price.

But the simple fact remains, however unpopular Professor Nutt's observations may be, that does not stop him from being absolutely correct.

[KdBrown04]

It's difficult to say which drugs are the most harmful, as they all cause adverse effects physically, emotionally, and psychologically. But...if you're interested in reading more about the various short-term and long-term effects of all the most commonly abused drugs, here's a great resource for you: https://www.briarwooddetox.com/blog/effects-illegal-drugs/