Meth death stats reveal vast issue

THE number of Australians killed as a result of methamphetamine use has doubled in just six years, shocking new data shows.

Professor Shane Darke from the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre described the findings, released today in the academic journal Addiction, as a public health crisis. His team examined 1649 fatalities linked to the illicit drug between 2009 and 2015 and found a mortality rate up to six times greater than the general population.

“I hear it occasionally said that the extent of the methamphetamine problem has been overstated, but this many identified cases over seven years shows we have a major problem,” Prof Darke said.

On average, each death represented 44 years of lost individual life, he said.

There are different types of methamphetamine and the drug crystal meth – commonly known as ice – is the most popular among users.

Professor Darke found a “hidden danger” in methrelated deaths, in the form of damage to vital organs from even modest amounts of the drug. In 22 per cent of cases, ‘natural’ disease like cardiac arrest or stroke were the common causes of death, Professor Darke said.

“Many users may be unaware that heart disease is a major factor in methamphetamine-related death.”

There are estimated to be about 300,000 regular users of meth across the country.