In Sweden, more than 100 young people die a year from drug overdoses

Overall age-related deaths from drug use in Sweden have risen dramatically since the early 1990s. According to the researchers, this is mainly due to an increase in opioid use. This was reported on September 7 by the news agency SVT Nyheter. However, there is a positive trend among persons between the ages of 15 and 29, where the mortality rate is now declining. However, more than 100 young people between the ages of 15 and 29 still die from overdoses every year. In the early 90s, several hundred fatalities were recorded per year. Today we are talking about about 900 cases per year. Of these 900 deaths, perhaps 15% come from younger ages, says Professor Bjorn Johnson of the University of Malmö. According to journalists, in most lethal cases, overdoses are caused by opioid use. A group of morphine-like compounds includes heroin, as well as tramadol and methadone. Thus, the number of deaths in the use of illicit drugs among persons aged 15 to 29 years in 1997 was 23. As of 2019, the figure included 126 people. The peak in this age group was reached in 2015, when 189 people became victims of overdose.