Who is most affected by stimulant use
A study by the department found that while overdose deaths have decreased by 19% among white people between 2019 and 2023, fatal overdoses have increased by 61% among the city’s Black population during that same period. Of those reported deaths, 80% involved some stimulant use, the department reported.
Recent city statistics show that while overdose deaths started to decrease in 2023 compared to the prior year, there was a larger decrease in fatalities among white residents, 15%, than there was among Black residents, who saw a 6% decrease.
The department found that the most stimulant-involved overdoses incidents have come from neighborhoods in the North, West and Southwest regions of Philadelphia. In 2023, the average reported age of Black men who died of a stimulant overdose was 52 years old, which is older than the average age of people who died of an opioid overdose.
What are stimulants?
According to the department’s website, stimulants, also known as “uppers,” are classified as drugs that speed up operations of the body’s central nervous system. They range from something as simple as a cup of coffee to prescribed medications like Adderall to illegal narcotics like cocaine and crystal methamphetamine.
When these stimulants are frequently consumed over a period of time, the effects can impact your heart’s rate per minute, raise your blood pressure and can lead to addiction. All of the above factors lead to heart diseases or overall heart failure.
Additional resources are provided on their website.