National Household Survey on Drug Use and Health

Indications of a decline of cocaine use are found in the US National Household Survey on Drug Use and Health as well as in student surveys (from both the US and Canada) and in data from drug treatment admissions. 

Sources Office of Applied Studies, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. 2005. National household survey on drug use and health, lables H2I and H38. http //oas.samhsa.gOv/nsduh/2k4nsduh/2k4Results/appH.htni tabh.2l or tabh.38. 

Hereafter, this survey will be referred to as the National Household Survey. The name was changed in 2002 from the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse to the National Household Survey on Drug Use and Health. The term National Household Survey will be used to discuss all editions of this survey. 

The National Survey on Drug Use and Health (formerly the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse) of the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) provides a detailed annual snapshot of the prevalence of drug abuse in our society. The charts in this and the following section are based on the findings of this survey for 2002. 

This surv cy included individuals 12 years of age or older. Personal and self-administered interview s were completed with 67,500 respondents. As it was a household survey, people such as military personnel in military installations, individuals in long-term hospitals, and prisoners were excluded from the sample. As a result, the data cannot be viewed as completely representative of everyone in the 50 states. Nevertheless, the National Survey on Drug Use and Health provides the best single description of frequency and quantity of drug use among a broad age range of people in U.S. society. 

Lifetime use of benzodiazepines has decreased slighty over the years, but this reduction has been minimal. According to the results from an annual survey done by SAMSHA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, of the United States Department of Health), use of tranquilizers or benzodiazepines has decreased. Data from SAMSHA s 2000 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse shows that in persons aged 18-25, lifetime use of tranquilizers decreased from 7.9% in 1999 to 7.4% in 2000. Past year usage of tranquilizers in this age group also decreased, from 3.1% in 1999, to 3.0% in 2000. Finally, past month usage of tranquilizers in the 18 to 25-year-old respondents to the survey decreased, from 1.1% in 1999, to 1.0% in 2000. 

National Household Survey on Drug Abuse. Table 40A and Table 40B. Percentages Reporting Lifetime Use. . 

The National Household Survey on Drug Abuse (NHSDA), which is conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMH-SA), provides statistical data on illegal drug use in the United States. For the purpose of the survey, hallucinogenic drugs were defined to include lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), phencyclidine (PCP), psilocybin, peyote, and ecstasy. 

Drug Use Health (formerly called the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse). This translates to an estimated 120 million people. Approximately one-fifth of persons 12 years of age and older (54 million people) participated in binge drinking, defined as having five or more drinks on the same occasion, at least once in the 30 days prior to the survey. In 2002 there were 15.9 million heavy drinkers, meaning that they drank five or more drinks on the same occasion on at least five different days in the past month. ... 

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