After analyzing medical data from more than 100 million people, scientists have discovered that recreational drugs can more than double the risk of stroke, and younger people are dealt the heaviest damage.
The risk of stroke was 122% higher for amphetamine users, closely followed by cocaine users, who are 96% more likely to suffer a stroke. Cannabis users were also shown to be at a greater risk, suffering 37% more strokes than non-users, as per the study. However, the study didn’t find enough evidence to pin opioids, a highly addictive painkiller, to an increased risk of stroke.
The rise in strokes observed linked to some drugs is not just affecting older people. Instead, when researchers turned their attention to under-55s, they saw a near tripling in stroke risk among amphetamine users, while risk associated with cocaine remained almost the same at 97%. Additional risk linked to cannabis was at a modest 14% in this demography.
Dr Megan Ritson, a research associate at the University of Cambridge and first author on the study, said: “Illicit drug use is a preventable stroke risk, but I don’t know if young people are aware how high the risk is.
“This is the first finding that has shown how different substance use disorders really can impact stroke risk.”
When blood vessels in the brain become blocked or burst, it disrupts the blood supply to brain cells, and they die, causing a stroke. Stroke is the third leading cause of death and disability worldwide, causing over 7 million deaths every year. Millions are left with disabilities, ranging from paralysis or weakness, on many occasions only on one side, to cognitive issues.
The researchers collected data from 32 studies to find patterns that could link using any recreational drugs to an increased risk of stroke. The study revealed links between drug use and strokes, but it doesn’t prove that drugs were to blame. Rather, drug users might be more prone to strokes for reasons like poorer general health.
To see if drug use is really a troublemaker, researchers ran more analyses. They looked at whether people who are genetically prone to having a drug disorder were more likely to suffer a stroke, and they found they were. The finding cemented the suspicion that drugs were to blame, rather than the drug users being at greater risk for other reasons. The effects of the drugs on the human body also support the idea that drug use can raise stroke risk in many ways.
Amphetamines and cocaine can spike blood pressure, but also constrict blood vessels in the brain, which can lead to hemorrhages and blockages in the brain. Cocaine can also speed up atherosclerosis, where cholesterol, fat, and other substances deposit on the walls of arteries, causing them to harden and narrow. Cannabis constricts blood vessels, too, and can cause further harm by favoring blood clot formation.
The results are already a cause for concern, as global recreational drug use has risen over the past decade by 20%, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). As per reports from the UN, about 300 million people now consume illicit drugs regularly, with an estimated 228 million using cannabis, 30 million opting for amphetamines, and 23 million using cocaine.
COVID-19 pushed 100 million people into extreme poverty, and 255 million jobs were lost. Socioeconomic stress spiked, and so did mental health issues. These two factors have been linked to increased use of cannabis and non-medical use of pharmaceutical sedatives.
Drugs cost lives, despite the illusion of peace and paradise it creates. Mental health issues need to be addressed by professionals, not through drug abuse. Spiralling into the abyss of ‘feeling high’ is the calm before the storm— a stroke that can make lives miserable.
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