This is a great post! Everything is understandable and educative, I didn't even realized how long it was till I finished it.
The United States, Canada, Nigeria, and Australia rank the highest, with over 10% of the population over age 15 admitting to using the drug according to the web and To be really honest, I don't think there is a solution to addiction and I will explain using my country Nigeria as an example.
In Nigeria, there are a lot of smokers,even from kids to adult,they smoke various things. Cigarettes are a joke to many youths in Nigeria as it doesn't have half the effect of the type they smoke.(I'm not good with the names but I know of Colorado, and some rizal wrapped ones too).
It difficult to blame them,as many are suffering from being abandoned by their parents and the government,while others are living in extreme poverty. This drugs too are cheap to afford and hence the addiction!
Like @josediccus said below, Molly is there too, and yes,they say it brings happiness to the user, I know that one is expensive because I don't see it around but should it drop in price am sure my people won't stop taking it ever!
It is in the best interest of businesses to have addictive products
This is another reason for the trend. If something is easily accessible, it aids more intakes. There are several drugs businesses in the street that thrives everyday,it is sad to me but it also makes the people in this business line happy!.
Thanks for sharing.
I think stress, pain, and depression pushes people towards taking substances that offer temporary relief. Unfortunately, many of these substances such as drugs cause even more suffering.
We can look at what is causing people to turn to drugs in the first place. For example, tackling poverty should also reduce the rate people turn to drugs and prevent them from getting addicted in the first place. Of course, tackling poverty is not something that can be done overnight. We would need to understand the causes of poverty as well.