Unemployment, Limited Education Increase Drug Users’ Risk of Fatal Overdose

Problem drug users who do not progress beyond a primary school education and struggle with unemployment or under-employment are more likely to die from a drug overdose, according to a new study from the University of Luxembourg.

The researchers analyzed detailed life data from more than 1,300 individuals in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg between 1994 and 2011. Of the case studies they analyzed, 272 involved drug users who suffered fatal overdoses, and 1,056 involved problem drug users (defined for this study as users of either cocaine or opioid drugs, mostly heroin) with similar life profiles to the fatal overdose cases. For every fatal overdose case, the researchers selected four controls of similar age and sex who had been using the same drug for a similar period of time.

The study examined the educational and professional histories of individuals through the national drug monitoring systems and through toxicological and autopsy reports on drug overdose fatalities. Researchers also looked at the educational and work histories of the parents of problem drug users to see whether family situations during childhood and young adulthood influence overdose deaths.

Overdose Fatalities and Education Levels

The researchers discovered that unemployment and failure to finish secondary school both significantly increased the risk of death from a drug overdose among problem drug users. The problem drug users who died from an overdose were found to be one-and-a-half times more likely to be unemployed than the problem drug users who were still living at the time of the study. A lack of secondary school education appeared to be an even stronger risk factor: the fatal overdose victims were twice as likely to have never advanced beyond primary school as the control cases.

Both of these factors increase the risk of an individual becoming a problem drug user in the first place, thereby putting him or her at risk of a fatal drug overdose. But this research established for the first time that unemployment and failure to finish school increase the risk of fatal overdose among people with otherwise similar problem drug histories.

Family History Does Not Influence Fatal Overdose Deaths

The researchers did not find similar results when they looked at the school and employment histories of the parents of problem drug users. Drug users who grew up in households where unemployment was common, or with parents who received minimal education, were no more likely to die from a drug overdose than drug users who grew up with parents who met minimum education standards and were steadily employed.

Improving Socioeconomic Status Will Help to Prevent Overdoses and Save Lives

The nature of this study did not provide many clues about why individuals with similar drug-user profiles would be more at risk for overdose death because of their educational and professional history. However, it did allow the researchers to conclude that socioeconomic status exerts an influence on fatal drug overdoses, and that current socioeconomic status is more influential than socioeconomic status during childhood.

The University of Luxembourg researchers also concluded that job support and opportunities for continuing education or vocational training should be part of larger efforts to reduce fatal drug overdoses. While full recovery from drug dependence and addiction may be the ultimate goal, this study demonstrates that helping problem drug users improve their education and vocational resources, and eventually their socioeconomic status, will help to save lives.