1.5 million people dependent on medication

Associations warn of drug abuse and drug interactions

03/11/2011

The drug addiction in Germany is still largely ignored by health circles, politics and authorities. Here are according to the „Yearbook addiction 2011“ around 1.5 million people are dependent on medicines. Most of those affected are addicted, according to the evaluations of the yearbook initiators of sleeping pills. The concomitant health hazards of ongoing drug use is mostly ignored by most patients.

Over 1.5 million people in Germany depend on medicines. Not counting the steadily growing abuse of supposed remedies for anxiety, stress, overweight or pain. Many also use medications to improve performance or to lighten the mood. The vast majority of consumers rarely care about side effects and ignore potential health hazards. For most, the dangers are apparently unknown.

16 million Germans a day resort to smuggling, 2.5 million are cannabis users, about 1.1 million people are dependent on sleeping medicines and another 400,000 people are dependent on other medicines such as tranquilizers, stimulants or other means. That determined that „Yearbook addiction 2011“ and relies on official information u.a. from the Federal Ministry of Health. In order to raise public awareness of the problem, an initiative has been set up by various associations. The German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB), the Automobile Club ADAC and the Federal Association of German Pharmacists Associations (ABDA) are also present. The aim is to present the drug abuse in all its effects and facets, so that countermeasures are taken. Because regular drug use can have serious health effects.

Medicines and road traffic
An important and likewise often misjudged danger is the drug effect and the driving of a vehicle. Already harmless remedies for colds can have dangerous consequences in road traffic. Some drugs trigger a reduction in responsiveness and the relative risk of accidents increases. According to the experts, every fourth accident on the road is related to a drug intake.

Professor Frank Mußhoff from the University of Bonn (Institute of Legal Medicine) explained that he was, for example, a case known after a patient was given by a doctor a small dose of methadone for back pain. Somewhat later, the person in question received another drug in a hospital for reassurance and muscle relaxation. Shortly after taking the man caused a traffic accident as a motorist. The physician warns in this context of the sometimes unpredictable drug interactions. Doctors therefore need to inform patients better and more thoroughly before administration. „Out of 400 road users who showed alcohol-free driving style without alcohol, 360 were under the influence of drugs.“

Pharmacies can refuse medication
In the Federal Republic pharmacies are legally obliged to counteract the misuse of drugs. Even when selling non-prescription drugs, consumers must be educated and warned about possible side effects and / or interactions. If drug abuse is suspected, pharmacists may refuse to purchase the medicine from the customer. However, this only applies if the product is sold without a doctor's prescription. As Ursula Sellberg of the Pharmacists Association said, with prescription drugs on suspicion a consultation with the attending physician must be made. It is then decided whether the funds will be spent anyway. To what extent these requirements have been implemented in practice, there are precise key figures. A major problem for pharmacists is the detection of abusive intentions. The sufferer can also easily go to the nearest pharmacy and there „his luck“ to attempt.

Performance drugs are increasing significantly
According to the Federal Association of Statutory Health Insurance Funds, about one in every 20 employees uses medicines to increase their performance. In figures, about 800,000 employees, pupils or students would resort to service providers. Many hope for improved concentration and increased performance. About seven percent of all accidents in the workplace, according to the Rhenish community accident insurance association by such so-called „happy pills“ caused. By comparison, about 13 percent of occupational accidents are committed under the influence of alcohol.

Benefits in recreational sports
Not only in professional competitive sports but also in recreational sports, more and more people take pills to achieve higher sports goals. According to some experts, around one million people in Germany would resort to doping drugs or other performance drugs. However, the DOSB vice president of grassroots sports / sports development, Walter Schneeloch, warned against the problem as a „Sport problem“ to watch. Rather, people from all walks of life and target groups are affected. Therefore, the symposium should promote a comprehensive education. What use is the health-promoting sport if active ingredients are in acute danger to the health of the consumer? (Sb)

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Picture credits: Rainer Sturm