Drug czar: users are younger, jobless

A majority of drug users in China are under the age of 35 and many of them are jobless, the Ministry of Public Security said today.

Of 265,000 drug users identified from January to June, three-quarters were under 35 years old and many were without a stable job, said Wu Xin, director of the National Anti-drug Commission under the ministry. Business people and celebrities were among the users, he said.

"Drug users have become younger and more diversified," Wu said.

More than 1.88 million of drug users registered with the ministry are between 18 and 35, and the number of users under the age of 18 is 38,000, the ministry said.

China National Narcotic Control Commission reported, meanwhile, that the abuse of synthetic drugs has been rapidly increasing.