Cocaine is now more available in the Republic than ecstasy and a significant rise in cocaine-users presenting for treatment can be expected, according to the National Advisory Committee on Drugs.
One in 500 young people aged between 15 and 34 surveyed by the NACD said they had used crack cocaine. In 1998, just 0.6 per cent of women used cocaine, compared with 1.9 per cent last year. The figures for men were 1.8 per cent in 1998 and 3 per cent in 2002.
The findings were presented in an NACD report launched yesterday entitled An Overview of Cocaine Use in Ireland.
Dr Des Corrigan, chairman of the NACD, said that while there was a lack of knowledge about the habits of recreational cocaine-users, or "snorters", the extent of the problem may be about to become apparent. "It takes time for people to recognise that they have an addiction and for them to decide they need to seek treatment, there is always a time lag. So we may be in that time lag situation at the present time."
"In scientific terms, it is probably the most addictive drug that we have, this is one of the reasons why we are so concerned about it. It is the one drug that laboratory animals will self-inject until it kills them. They keep coming back for the drug because of the reward.
"That's what makes it such an insidious drug, the intensity of the pleasure, the intensity of the energy, the physical alertness and the super-human feeling you get from the drug makes it very attractive". Some people may be "deluding themselves" that they were "in control of the white powder, while the white powder was in control of them".
The advisory committee also said that 30 per cent of those presenting for treatment for heroin addiction were using cocaine on average four times every day.
The statistics are based on a survey of 200 drug-users in treatment at Merchant's Quay Ireland and surveyed by the Union for Improved Services, Communication and Education.
The NACD said that because cocaine gave users a "shorter" hit than heroin, cocaine was being injected much more often than heroin.
Dr Corrigan said the higher injecting frequency was increasing the chances of users contracting hepatitis and HIV. Cocaine led to paranoid illusions and aggression and it was important it did not get "any more of a foothold in the country".
The NACD's research indicates that in terms of "current use" among 15 to 34-year-olds, cocaine was the second biggest drug, after cannabis.
Ms Maireád Lyons, director of the NACD, said cocaine addiction was particularly problematic because there are no replacement drugs for it.
"Drug-treatment services across the sectors face an enormous challenge in managing problem cocaine use amongst the opiate drug-treatment population," she said.
The NACD plans to conduct a population survey of drug use to pinpoint trends, including the growing frequency of cocaine use compared to Ecstasy. It is also exploring using an outreach type approach in nightclubs to raise awareness of the dangers of cocaine.
