Alcohol, tobacco & other drugs in Australia

Web report

Last updated: 21 Jan 2020

Author: AIHW

AIHW

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2020. Alcohol, tobacco & other drugs in Australia. Cat. no. PHE 221. Canberra: AIHW. Viewed 25 February 2020, https://pp.aihw.gov.au/reports/alcohol/alcohol-tobacco-other-drugs-australia

APA

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2020). Alcohol, tobacco & other drugs in Australia. Retrieved from https://pp.aihw.gov.au/reports/alcohol/alcohol-tobacco-other-drugs-australia

MLA

Alcohol, tobacco & other drugs in Australia. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 21 January 2020, https://pp.aihw.gov.au/reports/alcohol/alcohol-tobacco-other-drugs-australia

Vancouver

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Alcohol, tobacco & other drugs in Australia [Internet]. Canberra: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2020 [cited 2020 Feb. 25]. Available from: https://pp.aihw.gov.au/reports/alcohol/alcohol-tobacco-other-drugs-australia

Harvard

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) 2020, Alcohol, tobacco & other drugs in Australia, viewed 25 February 2020, https://pp.aihw.gov.au/reports/alcohol/alcohol-tobacco-other-drugs-australia

The consumption of alcohol, tobacco and other drugs is a major cause of preventable disease and illness in Australia. This report consolidates the most recently available information on alcohol, tobacco and other drug use in Australia, and includes key trends in the availability, consumption, harms and treatment for vulnerable populations. Further, information on a range of health, social and economic impacts of alcohol, tobacco and other drug use are highlighted.

Cat. no: PHE 221

Findings from this report:

The non-medical use of pharmaceutical drugs is an increasing public health problem in Australia
Cannabis is the most widely used illicit drug in Australia
There is a strong link between problematic alcohol or other drug use and experiences of homelessness
People who inject drugs experience considerably poorer health outcomes than other drug users

Notes

Data revisions and updates

Previous versions of files that have been updated are presented below.

(10 Sept 2018) Apparent consumption of alcohol data updated with 2016–17 numbers resulting in updates to the summary webpage (tableau image for alcohol consumption), Alcohol webpage (availability section and Figure ALCOHOL1) and supplementary Table S2.3.
(13 December 2018) Release of updated content, data tables and tableau.
Previous versions of data tables released 14 August 2018: Alcohol, tobacco and other drugs, Impacts and Populations.
(30 January 2019) National Health Survey data updated with 2017–18 numbers resulting in updates to the Tobacco webpage (consumption and tobacco smoking by age and sex sections) and Alcohol webpage (consumption, lifetime risk, single occasion risk sections) and supplementary tables S2.27 and S2.29.
Previous versions of data tables released 13 December 2018: Alcohol, tobacco and other drugs.
(15 March 2019) Updated wastewater analysis included resulting in updates to the Harm minimisation webpage, Drug types webpages and the Summary of main data sources used in this report webpage.
(25 July 2019) Release of updated content, data tables and tableau.
Previous versions of data tables released 30 January 2019: Alcohol, tobacco and other drugs, Impacts and Populations.
(6 August 2019) Revised National Health Survey data in Table S2.26 resulting in revisions on the Alcohol webpage (consumption and lifetime risk). Previous version of the data tables released 25 July 2019: Alcohol, tobacco and other drugs.
(23 September 2019) Release of updated content, data tables and tableau.
Previous versions of the data tables released 6 August 2019: Alcohol, tobacco and other drugs, Impacts and Populations.
(02 October 2019) Rates presented in Table S1.8 have been amended for all years for the categories: ‘Antidepressants and antipsychotics’; ‘Volatile solvents’; ‘Multiple drug use’; ‘Unspecified drug use and other drugs not elsewhere classified’; and ‘Fetal and perinatal conditions’.
Previous version of the data tables released on 23 September 2019: Impacts.
(08 November 2019) Release of updated content, data tables and tableau.
Previous versions of data tables released 23 September 2019: Alcohol, tobacco and other drugs, and Populations. Previous versions of data table released 18 October 2019: Impacts.
(19 December 2019) Release of updated content, data tables and tableau. Previous versions of data tables released 23 September 2019: Alcohol, tobacco and other drugs, and Populations. Previous versions of data table released 18 October 2019: Impacts.
(21 January 2020) Release of updated content, data tables and tableau. Previous versions of data tables released 19 December 2019: Alcohol, tobacco and other drugs, Populations and Impacts.

Pages updated at 21 January 2020 release

Section	Page updated	Data sources
Section 2 – Impacts	Social impacts – Contact with the criminal justice system	Drug use monitoring in Australia: Drug use among police detainees, 2018
Section 2 – Impacts	Social impacts – Homicide	Homicide in Australia 2015–16
Section 2 – Impacts	Health impacts – Drug-induced deaths	Trends in drug-induced deaths in Australia, 1999-2018
Section 2 – Impacts	Health impacts – Injury and hospitalisation	Trends in drug-related hospitalisations in Australia, 1999-2018
Section 3 – Drug types	Alcohol – Policy context	National Alcohol Strategy 2019 – 2028
Section 3 – Drug types	Tobacco – At risk groups Alcohol – At risk groups	National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey, 2018-19
Section 3 – Drug types	Cannabis – At risk groups Meth/amphetamine and other stimulants – Consumption Non-medical use of pharmaceutical drugs – At risk groups Illicit opioids, including heroin	Drug use monitoring in Australia: Drug use among police detainees, 2018
Section 3 – Drug types	Cannabis – Harms – Deaths Meth/amphetamine and other stimulants – Harms – Deaths Non-medical use of pharmaceutical drugs – Harms – Deaths Illicit opioids, including heroin – Harms – Deaths	Trends in drug-induced deaths in Australia, 1999-2018
Section 4 – Populations	Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people	National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey, 2018-19
Section 4 – Populations	People in contact with the criminal justice system – Alcohol consumption People in contact with the criminal justice system – Illicit drug use	Drug use monitoring in Australia: Drug use among police detainees, 2018
Section 4 – Populations	People in contact with the criminal justice system–Corrective services	Prisoners in Australia, 2019

Pages updated at 19 December 2019 release

Section	Page updated	Data sources
Interactive data	Treatment	Pharmacotheraphy in Australia
Section 2 – Impacts	Health impacts – Hospitalisations	AIHW analysis of the National Hospital Morbidity Database 2017–18
Section 3 – Drug types	Alcohol – Harms Cannabis – Harms Non-medical use of pharmaceuticals – Harms	AIHW analysis of the National Hospital Morbidity Database 2017–18
Section 4 – Populations	People experiencing homelessness	Specialist homelessness services annual report 2018–19

Pages updated at 8 November 2019 release

Section	Page updated	Data sources
Section 1 – Harm minimisation	Supply reduction - Prohibited substances	Illicit Drug Reporting System (IDRS) Ecstasy and related Drugs Reporting System (EDRS)
Section 1 – Harm minimisation	Supply reduction – Wastewater analysis	National Wastewater Drug Monitoring Program Report 8 Methylamphetamine supply reduction–measures of effectiveness
Section 2 – Impacts	Health impacts – Burden of disease	Burden of tobacco use in Australia: Australian Burden of Disease Study 2015
Section 2 – Impacts	Health impacts – Injection-related harms Health impacts – Overdose	Illicit Drug Reporting System (IDRS)
Section 2 – Impacts	Health impacts – Injection-related harms	ABS Causes of Death, 2018
Section 2 – Impacts	Health impacts – Mental illness Health impacts – Overdose	Ecstasy and related Drugs Reporting System (EDRS)
Section 2 – Impacts	Social impacts – Risky behaviours and criminal activity	Illicit Drug Reporting System (IDRS) Ecstasy and related Drugs Reporting System (EDRS)
Section 2 – Impacts	Economic impacts	Identifying the Social Costs of Tobacco Use to Australia in 2015/16
Section 3 – Drug types	Tobacco – Harms	Burden of tobacco use in Australia: Australian Burden of Disease Study 2015
Section 3 – Drug types	Tobacco – Consumption Tobacco – Geographic trends Alcohol – Consumption Cannabis – Consumption Meth/amphetamine and other stimulants – Geographic trends Non-medical use of pharmaceuticals – Consumption Non-medical use of pharmaceuticals – At risk groups Illicit opioids including heroin – consumption New (and emerging) psychoactive substances – Synthetic cannabinoids	National Wastewater Drug Monitoring Program Report 8
Section 3 – Drug types	Cannabis – Availability Cannabis – At risk groups Cannabis – People who inject drugs Meth/amphetamine and other stimulants – Availability Non-medical use of pharmaceuticals – At risk groups Non-medical use of pharmaceuticals – At risk groups Illicit opioids including heroin – Availbility Illicit opioids including heroin – At risk groups	Illicit Drug Reporting System (IDRS)
Section 3 – Drug types	Cannabis – Availability Meth/amphetamine and other stimulants – Availability Meth/amphetamine and other stimulants – Consumption New and emerging psychoactive substances – Consumption	Ecstasy and related Drugs Reporting System (EDRS)
Section 3 – Drug types	Meth/amphetamine and other stimulants – Availability	Methylamphetamine supply reduction–measures of effectiveness
Section 3 – Drug types	Non-medical use of pharmaceuticals – Harms Illicit opioids including heroin – Consumption Illicit opioids including heroin – Harms	ABS Causes of Death, 2018
Section 4 – Populations	People experiencing homelessness – Illicit drug use People in contact with the criminal justice system – Illicit drug use People who inject drugs – Methamphetamine People who inject drugs – Heroin People who inject drugs – Burden of disease and injury	Illicit Drug Reporting System (IDRS)
Section 4 – Populations	People with mental health conditions – Illicit drug use	Ecstasy and related Drugs Reporting System (EDRS)

Pages updated at 23 September 2019 release

Section	Page updated	Data sources
Section 1 – Harm minimisation	Demand reduction – Alcohol consumption	OECD Health Statistics 2019 Apparent consumption of alcohol
Section 1 – Harm minimisation	Supply reduction – Drug seizures	Illicit Drug Data Report 2017–18
Section 2 – Impacts	Social impacts – Contact with the criminal justice system	Illicit Drug Data Report 2017–18
Section 2 – Impacts	Social impacts – Driving under the influence of alcohol and other drugs	Road Trauma Australia—Annual Summaries
Section 2 – Impacts	Health impacts – Injection-related harms	Australian NSP Survey National Data Report 2014 – 2018: Prevalence of HIV, HCV and injecting and sexual behaviour among NSP attendees
Section 2 – Impacts	Economic impacts	The Social Costs of Methamphetamine in Australia 2013/14
Section 3 – Drug types	Alcohol – Availability	Apparent consumption of alcohol
Section 3 – Drug types	Alcohol – Risky behaviours	Road Trauma Australia—Annual Summaries
Section 3 – Drug types	Cannabis – Availability Cannabis – At risk groups Meth/amphetamine and other stimulants – Availability Meth/amphetamine and other stimulants – Consumption Non-medical use of pharmaceuticals – Availability Non-medical use of pharmaceuticals – People engaged in the criminal justice system Illicit opioids including heroin – Availability Illicit opioids including heroin – People engaged in the criminal justice system New (and emerging) psychoactive substances – Availability	Illicit Drug Data Report 2017–18
Section 4 – Populations	People identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex or queer – People who inject drugs People who inject drugs – Methamphetamine People who inject drugs – Heroin People who inject drugs – Pharmaceutical opioids People who inject drugs – Injecting risk behaviours People who inject drugs –Injection-related health problems People who inject drugs – Needle and syringe programs	Australian NSP Survey National Data Report 2014 – 2018: Prevalence of HIV, HCV and injecting and sexual behaviour among NSP attendees
Section 4 – Populations	Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people – Health and harms	Australia’s Annual Overdose Report 2019

Pages updated at 25 July 2019 release

Section	Page updated	Data sources
Section 1 – Harm minimisation	Supply reduction – Wastewater analysis	National Wastewater Drug Monitoring Program, 2019
Section 1 – Demand reduction	Demand reduction – Illicit drug use and non-medical use of pharmaceutical drugs	UNODC – World Drug Report 2018
Section 1 – Demand reduction	Demand reduction – Treatment	Alcohol and other drug use in regional and remote Australia: consumption, harms and access to treatment 2016–17
Section 1 – Demand reduction	Demand reduction – Treatment	Alcohol and other Drug Treatment Services National Minimum Data Set 2017–18
Section 1 – Demand reduction	Demand reduction – Treatment	UNODC – World drug report 2019
Section 2 – Impacts	Health impacts – Overdose	AMBO-Stats 2017–18
Section 2 – Impacts	Health impacts – Drug-induced deaths	Alcohol and other drug use in regional and remote Australia: consumption, harms and access to treatment 2016–17
Section 2 – Impacts	Health impacts – Drug-induced deaths	Trends in drug-induced deaths in Australia 1997–2017
Section 2 – Impacts	Health impacts – Burden of disease, Injection-related harms	Australian Burden of Disease Study: impact and causes of illness and death in Australia 2015
Section 2 – Impacts	Social impacts – Driving under the influence of alcohol and other drugs	Crime Victimisation Australia, 2017–18
Section 2 – Impacts	Social impacts – Contact with the Criminal Justice System	Drug use monitoring in Australia: Drug use among police detainees, 2017
Section 3 – Drug types	Tobacco – Treatment Alcohol – Treatment Cannabis – Treatment Methamphetamines and other stimulants – Amphetamines, ecstasy and cocaine Non-medical use of pharmaceutical drugs – Treatment Illicit opioids (heroin) – Treatment	Alcohol and other Drug Treatment Services National Minimum Data Set 2017–18
Section 3 – Drug types	Alcohol – Geographic trends Cannabis – Geographic trends Methamphetamine and other stimulants – Geographic trends	Alcohol and other drug use in regional and remote Australia: consumption, harms and access to treatment 2016–17
Section 3 – Drug types	Cannabis – Consumption Non-medical use of pharmaceutical drugs – Availability New (and emerging) psychoactive substances	UNODC – World Drug Report 2019
Section 3 – Drug types	Tobacco – Consumption and geographic trends Alcohol – Consumption Cannabis – Consumption Methamphetamine and other stimulants – Geographic trends Non-medical use of pharmaceuticals – Consumption and at risk groups New (and emerging) psychoactive substances	National Wastewater Drug Monitoring Program, 2019
Section 3 – Drug types	Cannabis – Treatment Non-medical use of pharmaceutical drugs – Treatment Illicit opioids including heroin – Treatment	Alcohol and other Drug Treatment Services National Minimum Data Set 2017–18
Section 3 – Drug types	Tobacco – Key findings Alcohol – Younger people Cannabis – Use by age and sex	Australian Secondary School Students’ Use of Tobacco, Alcohol, Over-the-Counter Drugs, and Illicit Substances, 2017
Section 3 – Drug types	Cannabis – People engaged with the criminal justice system Methamphetamine and other stimulants – Consumption	The Health of Australia’s Prisoners 2018
Section 3 – Drug types	Illicit opioids – Treatment	National Opioid Pharmacotherapy Statistical Annual Data Collection (NOPSAD) 2018
Section 3 – Drug types	Cannabis – People engaged with the criminal justice system Methamphetamines and other stimulants – Meth/amphetamine, ecstasy, cocaine Non-medical use of pharmaceutical drugs – at risk groups Illicit opioids including Heroin – At risk groups	Drug use monitoring in Australia: Drug use among police detainees, 2017
Section 3 – Drug types	Tobacco – Harms Alcohol – Harms, at risk groups Cannabis – Harms Methamphetamines and other stimulants – Harms Illicit opioids including Heroin – Harms	Australian Burden of Disease Study: impact and causes of illness and death in Australia 2015
Section 3 – Drug types	Methamphetamines and other stimulants – Harms Non-medical use of pharmaceutical drugs – Harms Illicit opioids including Heroin – Harms	Trends in drug-induced deaths in Australia, 1997–2017
Section 4 – Populations	Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people – Treatment Older people – Treatment Younger people – Treatment	Alcohol and other Drug Treatment Services National Minimum Data Set 2017–18
Section 4 – Populations	Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people – Illicit drug use	Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Adolescent and Youth Health and Wellbeing 2018
Section 4 – Populations	Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people – treatment	National Opioid Pharmacotherapy Statistical Annual Data Collection (NOPSAD) 2018
Section 4 – Populations	Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people – treatment	Alcohol and other drug use in regional and remote Australia: consumption, harms and access to treatment 2016–17
Section 4 – Populations	People experiencing homelessness – alcohol consumption, health and harms	Specialist Homelessness Services Annual Report 2017–18
Section 4 – Populations	Older people – treatment	National Opioid Pharmacotherapy Statistical Annual Data Collection (NOPSAD) 2018
Section 4 – Populations	People in contact with the criminal justice system – tobacco smoking and health and harms	The Health of Australia’s Prisoners 2018
Section 4 – Populations	People in contact with the criminal justice system – Young people under youth justice supervision	Youth justice in Australia 2017–18
Section 4 – Populations	People in contact with the criminal justice system – Corrective services	Prisoners in Australia, 2018
Section 4 – Populations	People in contact with the criminal justice system – Police	Recorded Crime – Offenders, 2017–18
Section 4 – Populations	People in contact with the criminal justice system – Courts	Criminal Courts Australia, 2017–18
Section 4 – Populations	People in contact with the criminal justice system – Alcohol consumption People in contact with the criminal justice system – Illicit drug consumption	Drug use monitoring in Australia: Drug use among police detainees, 2017
Section 4 – Populations	People with mental health conditions – Tobacco smoking	Tobacco in Australia: Facts and Issues 2018
Section 4 – Populations	Younger people – Tobacco smoking, geographic trends, alcohol consumption, cannabis use and mental health	Australian Secondary School Students’ Use of Tobacco, Alcohol, Over-the-Counter Drugs, and Illicit Substances, 2017
Section 4 – Populations	Younger people – Tobacco smoking (daily smoking)	Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Adolescent and Youth Health and Wellbeing 2018
Section 4 – Populations	People who inject drugs – Drug type	Needle and Syringe Program National Minimum Data Collection, 2018
Section 4 – Populations	People who inject drugs	UNODC – World Drug Report 2019
Section 4 – Populations	Older people – Tobacco smoking Younger people – Health and harms People who inject drugs – Health and harms	Australian Burden of Disease Study: impact and causes of illness and death in Australia 2015

Pages updated at 13 December 2018 release

Section	Page updated	Data sources
Section 1 – Harm minimisation	Supply reduction – Drug seizures	Illicit Drug Data Report 2016–17
Section 1 – Harm minimisation	Supply reduction – Prohibited substances	Illicit Drug Reporting System (IDRS)
Section 1 – Harm minimisation	Supply reduction – Wastewater analysis	National Wastewater Drug Monitoring Program
Section 1 – Harm minimisation	Demand reduction – Alcohol consumption.	Causes of Death, 2017
Section 2 – Impacts	Health impacts – Pregnancy complications	Australia’s mothers and babies 2016
Section 2 – Impacts	Health impacts – Injury and hospitalisation	Opioid harm in Australia: prevalence, trends and comparisons between Australia and Canada
Section 2 – Impacts	Health impacts – Injection-related harms	Illicit Drug Reporting System (IDRS) Australian Needle Syringe National Data report 2013–2017
Section 2 – Impacts	Health impacts – Drug-induced deaths	Causes of Death, 2017 Australia’s Annual Overdose Report 2018
Section 2 – Impacts	Social impacts – Contact with the criminal justice system	Illicit Drug Data Report 2016–17
Section 2 – Impacts	Social impacts – Risky behaviours and criminal activity	The Ecstasy and related Drugs Reporting System (EDRS) Crime Victimisation, Australia, 2016–17
Section 3 – Drug types	Alcohol – Availability	Apparent Consumption of Alcohol, 2016–17
Section 3 – Drug types	Alcohol – Harms (Deaths, illness and injury - new)	Causes of Death, 2017
Section 3 – Drug types	Alcohol – Risky behaviours	Road trauma Australia 2017 statistical summary
Section 3 – Drug types	Tobacco – Harms	Australia’s mothers and babies 2016
Section 3 – Drug types Section 3 – Drug types Section 3 – Drug types	Cannabis; Methamphetamine and other stimulants; Illicit opioids (heroin); New (and emerging) psychoactive substances — Availability	Illicit Drug Data Report 2016–17
Section 3 – Drug types	Cannabis — At-risk groups Methamphetamine and other stimulants – Availability. Non-medical use of pharmaceutical drugs – At-risk groups. Illicit opioids (heroin) – Availability; At-risk groups	Illicit Drug Reporting System (IDRS)
Section 3 – Drug types	Non-medical use of pharmaceutical drugs – Availability, Harms (Deaths, illness and injury), Illicit opioids (heroin) – Availability, Harms	Opioid harm in Australia: Prevalence, trends and comparisons between Australia and Canada
Section 3 – Drug types	Methamphetamine and other stimulants – Harms (Deaths)	Opioid, amphetamine and cocaine-induced deaths in Australia
Section 3 – Drug types	Alcohol, Cannabis, Non-medical use of pharmaceutical drugs, Illicit Opioids (Heroin) - Deaths	Australia’s Annual Overdose Report 2018
Section 4 – Populations	Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People — Tobacco smoking.	Australia’s mothers and babies 2016
Section 4 – Populations	Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People – Health and harms.	Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health organisations: Online Services report – key results 2016–17
Section 4 – Populations	People with mental health conditions — Illicit drug use.	The Ecstasy and related Drugs Reporting System (EDRS)
Section 4 – Populations	Homeless people — Illicit drug use, People in contact with the criminal justice system — Illicit drug use, People who inject drugs	Illicit Drug Reporting System (IDRS)
Section 4 – Populations	Homeless people — Illicit drug use, People in contact with the criminal justice system — Illicit drug use, People who inject drugs	Australian Needle Syringe National Data report 2013–2017

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