The opioid epidemic is spreading. Here’s the story so far

Aug 24, 2018

A large field of poppies grows on the outskirts of Jelawar village in the Arghandab Valley north of Kandahar April 18, 2011. REUTERS/Bob Strong (AFGHANISTAN - Tags: SOCIETY)

The US has 5% of the world’s population and 80% of the world’s opioid use. Image: REUTERS/Bob Strong

Blair Smith

Head of Population Health Sciences Division, Professor of Population Science, University of Dundee

Our Impact

The Big Picture

Explore and monitor how Global Health is affecting economies, industries and global issues

A hand holding a looking glass by a lake

Crowdsource Innovation

Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale

Stay up to date:

Global Health

Image: US National Institute on Drug Abuse

Have you read?

Don't miss any update on this topic

Create a free account and access your personalized content collection with our latest publications and analyses.

License and Republishing

World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

The Agenda Weekly

A weekly update of the most important issues driving the global agenda

Subscribe today

You can unsubscribe at any time using the link in our emails. For more details, review our privacy policy.

More on Global Health
See all

Wiring the Community Health Worker: A Winning Strategy for NCD Care

22 minutes ago

COP28 hosts first-ever Health Day, and other health stories you need to know this week

Shyam Bishen

December 7, 2023

New research links nanoplastics to Parkinson’s and some types of dementia

Janosch Heller

December 5, 2023

1:42

This cancer patient alleviates $65 million in medical debts

1:58

Cutting salt can reduce your blood pressure as much as medication

Pills alone can’t treat HIV in adolescents. They need psychological support, too

Sarah Bernays and Nicola Willis

December 1, 2023