Important and Interesting Crystal Meth Statistics!

Crystal Meth, the methamphetamine also known on the street as ice, speed and crank, continues to be the drug of choice for millions of US citizens every year. In order to understand more comprehensively the extent of crystal meth use and addiction across America, we will take a closer look at the crystal meth statistics by surveys conducted by two official organizations. These surveys are the National Survey on Drug Use and Healthand the University Of Michigan's own long term Monitoring the Future survey (covering from 1976 to 2011). This information in pinpointing how treatment can be made more effective and available to those who really need it.

Crystal Meth Statistics By Age

Unlike many other illegal drugs and substances, the percentage of crystal meth users that are either men or women is more or less 50/50. In fact, women are actually more likely to use crystal meth than they are cocaine. Abuse of crystal meth can also be found in both rural areas and more urban areas. As of 2011, KCI (a government-run anti meth site) recorded the demographics of crystal meth users in terms of age as:

• 40 years old and above - 6%
• 30 to 40 years old - 13%
• 23 to 30 years old - 19%
• 18 to 32 years old - 35%
• Under 18 years old - 24%

Crystal Meth Statistics Reveal Who Uses It Most

Although crystal meth abuse and addiction is spread across a variety of different ethnicities, genders, races and ages, there are clear crystal meth statistics that show two profiles that fit the majority of users. These are white, blue collar workers aged 20 to mid-30 who may be jobless, or, high school and college students or athletes.

Student Crystal Meth User Statistics

One of the most shocking revelations regarding crystal meth statistics found by the survey carried out by National Survey on Drug Use and Health was that an excess of 12.3 million Americans 12 years and older have tried the substance once at the very least in their lifetime. In 2009 alone, 1.2 million people aged 12 or older admitted to having abused the substance at least during the year before they were surveyed. To give a more detailed picture, the MTF found in 2010 that the number of students who admitted abuse of the substance at least once in the year before the survey was carried out could be broken down as follows:

• 8th Grade - 1.2%
• 10th Grade - 1.6%
• 12th Grade - 1.0%

It is also important to note that the average age of new crystal meth users between 12 and 49 had levered in 2011 to 17.8 years, from the 2004 estimate recorded as 20.6 years.

Some Positive and Encouraging Results From Crystal Meth Statistics

Judging by the findings of the surveys however, it would appear though that there have been some decreases in crystal meth use and abuse over the last ten years or more. For instance, the survey carried out by National Survey on Drug Use and Health found that the number of people who admitted to using crystal meth in the last month had decreased from 731,000 to 439,000 or 0.3% to 0.2% between 2006 and 2011. It also found that the number of first time or new users had decreased in 2011. Between the years 2002 and 2006 this was recorded as being 192,000 to 318,000, whereas in 2011 this was recorded as the much lower 133,000. This is much closer to the 2010 estimate of 107,000, which while being higher in 2011 still shows a significant decrease.

Crystal Meth Statistics Regarding Current and Regular Users

There were also drops in the number and percentage of regular or current users aged 12 or older as shown by the following breakdown:

• 2002 - 683,000 regular users
• 2003 - 726,000 regular users
• 2004 - 706,000 regular users
• 2005 - 628,000 regular users
• 2006 - 731,000 regular users
• 2007 - 530,000 regular users
• 2008 - 314,000 regular users
• 2009 - 502,000 regular users
• 2010 - 353,000 regular users
• 2011 - 439,000 regular users

Although between 2010 and 2011 it had clearly increased, in comparison to the number of regular users recorded from 2002 to 2006 there has been a significant drop. While the overall picture of crystal meth statistics is more positive in terms of there being less new users of crystal meth, the number of current or regular users of the drug has remained the same the last few years and while dramatically lower than 10 years ago, still highlights a current and ongoing problem. When you consider that between 1994 and 2004 that there was an 100% increase in those between the ages of 12 and 17 who were admitted to crystal meth addiction treatment programs, it is clear that we are still a long way from a major change in trends.