Cause and effect of Drug Addiction paragraph for HSC
Drug addiction is increasingly becoming so dire that it has now taken the degree of a public health problem for Bangladesh with far-flung effects on individual lives, families, and society as a whole. The reasons for drug abuse are diverse and emanate from the complex interaction of social, economic, and psychological drivers.
A 2021 study in the Journal of Health, Population and Nutrition establishes that family disorganization and parental neglect are among the major causes of drug abuse among the Bangladeshi youth. In this study, it is reported that 43.93% of addicts cited family problems as the chief cause for their addiction. This clearly shows the lead role that family dynamics play in the shaping of behavior and choices that adolescents make.
Peer pressure and social influence are major contributory factors to exposure to drugs. A survey by the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee in 2019 reported that 85.7% mentioned taking drugs due to friends’ influence. This underpins the strong force of social circles one keeps on individual choice decisions, more so with youthful people at impressionable ages.
The economic factors, too, are other prominent causes contributing to the drug crisis. According to the Department of Narcotics Control, in 2020, almost 58.62 percent of drug addicts were from low-income groups. Poverty, unemployment, and lack of opportunity give birth to an atmosphere of hopelessness and helplessness, and thus, by drugging themselves, they seek relief from this environment.
Easy availability of drugs exacerbates the situation. A 2018 report of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime had underlined that Bangladesh’s geography exposes it to drug trafficking with porous borders facilitating narcotics inflows. Easy access, coupled with incapacity of law enforcement to rein in, sets the ground fertile for abuse.
In most cases, these mental disorders go undiagnosed and untreated, hence firmly rooting the foundation of drug addiction. In 2020, it was reported that as many as 37% of drug addicts in Bangladesh suffered from pre-existing mental illnesses like depression and anxiety disorders in a study published in the International Journal of Mental Health Systems. Low levels of mental health awareness and limited access to psycho-social services cause many to resort to drugs as a form of self-medication.
The effects of drug addiction in Bangladesh are serious and multifaceted. First of all, there is a serious toll on an individual’s health from the ongoing case of the addicted person. The National Institute of Mental Health opined in 2021 that drug addicts are three times more prone to chronic diseases like hepatitis, HIV/AIDS, and tuberculosis compared to normal people. In fact, it has been estimated that the life expectancy of chronic drug users could stand as low as 15-20 years below the national average.
The worst sufferers are the families of drug addicts. In fact, a 2019 study by Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies comes up with the fact that families having a member addicted to drugs spend an average 30% of their income on drugs, causing financial strain and poverty. Besides, the same study found that domestic violence had increased by 40 percent in such families, which indirectly would show the social disintegration caused by abuse.
This is what makes the economic impact of drug addiction on Bangladesh very appalling. Because of lost productivity, healthcare expenditure, and law enforcement expenses associated with drug addiction, it is estimated that the country loses around 1.6% of its GDP annually, as estimated by the Ministry of Finance in 2020. This is equivalent to billions of taka that might otherwise be diversified into education, infrastructure, and other aspects of socio-economic development.
It further feeds crime and social unrest due to addiction to drugs. In 2021, the Bangladesh Police mentioned that out of all the arrests made, 65 percent were related to drugs, thus burdening the criminal justice system and exacerbating the problem of prison overcrowding. What exists between drug addiction and crime drives a person into a cycle of social marginalization and recidivism that is very hard to come out of.
The effect of drug addiction is also felt in the education sector. According to the 2018 Ministry of Education survey, students who use drugs are 2.5 times more likely to drop out than their nonusing peers. Such disruption in education has implications for the long-run human capital formation and the country’s economic potential.
It calls for a multidimensional approach regarding this crisis in Bangladesh. The deliverance of the prevention programs among the youth, more specifically in schools and communities, has been very promising. There was a report by the Department of Narcotics Control from a pilot project in 2020 stating that through comprehensive education and counseling, the drug use of the participating schools was reduced by 25 percent.
Improvement of access to mental health services and Addiction Treatment needs urgent attention. The government’s aspiration to have treatment centers in every district by 2025 is a commendable idea, but it is yet to materialize into facilities that are forthcoming, with a few that exist not having adequate capacity and quality care.
This would require strengthening the law enforcement agencies and the authorities responsible for border control. Cooperation from neighboring countries and international agencies would definitely help Bangladesh develop its mechanism to combat drug trafficking.
It is a tiered problem beading into its roots and having far-flung consequences. It only requires coordination among government departments, civil society, and communities for going ahead on this crisis. Bangladesh could decrease this burning effect of drugs on its citizens and their future by attacking the root cause, improving treatment options, and adopting effective prevention strategies.