If you were asked to rank cocaine, marijuana, heroin and alcohol according to which is the most harmful, which one would be on top?A new medical study published in the British Medical Journal Lancet awards the dishonor to alcohol, beating out all the competition. The study looked at how destructive these substances can be to the individual who takes them and to society as a whole. British scientists, led by Dr. David Nutt at the University of Bristol, ranked 20 drugs on the following criteria: physical harm to the user, how addictive it is, and the effect of its use on families, communities, and society.
Heroin and crack cocaine, marijuana, ecstasy and LSD scored far lower.
When drunk in excess, alcohol damages nearly all organ systems. It is also connected to higher death rates and is involved in a greater percentage of crime than most other drugs, including heroin.
The study was paid for by Britain's Centre for Crime and Justice Studies
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