Methamphetamine Gains Foothold in Mexico Over the Past Decade Cesar Neyoy - Yuma Sun
go to original September 5, 2013

SAN LUIS RIO COLORADO, Sonora – A little over a decade ago, methamphetamine use was so low in Mexico that it didn’t even show up in yearly drug statistics.

Even now, methamphetamine ranks at the bottom of the list of illegal drugs consumed in that country. Meth users account for not even a quarter of the number of that country’s marijuana consumers. And a national survey done by Mexico’s federal Health Ministry found that meth was the drug of choice of fewer than 1 percent of chronic drug users or addicts in 2011, the most recent year for which the survey was done.

But statistics belie the true nature of methamphetamine’s threats to society and to individual, says the city’s health director. What’s more, the survey – taken at a regional level throughout Mexico – reflects neither the local reality in San Luis Rio Colorado, nor the new reality, says Dr. Abel Sanchez, director of Municipal Medical Services in San Luis Rio Colorado.

“If we look at it purely in terms of numbers, (methamphetamine use) is a small percentage with respect to the population in general,” said Sanchez. But, he noted, “the problem is that addictions are conditions that damage the social fabric.”

A native of the Mexican border city south of Yuma, Sanchez said that fewer than 20 years ago, meth use in San Luis Rio Colorado was unheard of.

Read the rest at Yuma Sun

The Yuma Sun is examining methamphetamine and its impact on Yuma County. This story is one in a series called, "The Dangers of Meth."

We invite you to add your charity or supporting organizations' news stories and coming events to PVAngels so we can share them with the world. Do it now!