Record 80 cocaine deaths in Italy in 2024

Rome: Italy registered an all-time high of 80 deaths linked to cocaine or crack use in 2024, meaning they accounted for 35% of all ascertained overdose fatalities last year, according to the annual report to parliament on drug addiction in Italy, ANSA reported.

It added that this was just one less than the number of deaths caused by heroin and opioids.

The report sounded the alarm about the increasing use of unprescribed antidepressants, especially among very young people, with girls twice as likely as boys to take them.

It also warned about the constant threat posed by New Psychoactive Substances (NPS), which are intended to mimic the effects of internationally controlled drugs and sold as ‘legal’ replacements for them, while posing similar health and social risks.