Cannabis is the most common type of drug used by kids under 21, according to a Narcotics Branch report, covering the first quarter of this year. The number of cases known to the police rose to 67 from 38 in the comparable quarter the year before.
More worrying for parents was the result of a survey last year that found 17,800 Hong Kong students had taken drugs during their young lives. This was a 23 per cent increase over the number found by the previous survey three years before. The number of students who had taken drugs in the previous 30 days last year’s survey found was 4,300.
It is not just statistics when tragedy occurs. The teenager who jumps off a multi-storey building to his death. The police find a drugs stash at the point from which he leapt.
The Narcotics Branch, part of the Security Bureau, warns that cannabis should not be regarded as a mild social lubricant. According to the Branch, it is dangerous. Neurological after-effects can include: paranoid reaction, muddled thinking, depression, hallucination, panic, schizophrenia and dementia-like symptoms.
They go on to say that physical after-effects of cannabis use may include: bronchitis, emphysema, impairment of the immune system, cancer of mouth and respiratory system, hypertension and heart disease – immediately after smoking cannabis you are four times more likely to have a heart attack. It doesn’t enhance sex. Males will lose testosterone and sperm count will diminish. Women can give birth to children with low weight.
Other drugs are widely abused in Hong Kong with heroin out front followed by cocaine, methamphetamine and others. Parents concerned about an errant child will find helpful information at www.nd.gov.hk.
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