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Estimating Community Drug Abuse by Wastewater Analysis

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

11–20 of 44 posts

Re: Estimating Community Drug Abuse by Wastewater Analysis

#11
I find it very hard to believe that those excreted drug residues don't react with detergents, chemicals used for cleaning, oils from foods and all kinds of other pills, drugs and plants that end up in sewage. Does the study take that into account ?

Also, it is said that about 80% of dollar bills contain traces of cocaine. So combine the measurements of drugs on money and of drugs in shit and you end up with an interesting picture of society..

Re: Estimating Community Drug Abuse by Wastewater Analysis

#13

My mate works for a water treatment company, so he's regularly down the sewers doing stuff. His best ever comment was that he hates it in the rich towns cos the shit stinks vile. But in the poor towns it smells OK. I had always thought all shit smells the same.

I think your mate should write a blog post.

Re: Estimating Community Drug Abuse by Wastewater Analysis

#14
post #10
post #3

This isn't estimating drug abuse, it's estimating drug use. Wastewater measurements alone are not enough to determine how much of that use is harmful.

It's all harmful, baby. Now show us the funding! -DEA

*unless it's prescribed by a doctor for "back pain", then heroin is a-ok!

Re: Estimating Community Drug Abuse by Wastewater Analysis

#15
post #8
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What about in relation to population density in a given area and estimated water use per person?

It can't distinguish low use by everybody vs. heavy use by a few. And some people may be harmed by low use, while others may be unharmed by heavy use.

It doesn't have to distinguish, because there's a rather predictable relationship between total use and heavy use - the usual old "pareto principle". Similarly, total use is a very good proxy for harms.

Re: Estimating Community Drug Abuse by Wastewater Analysis

#17

> The social and medical problems of drug abuse are a matter of increasing global concern. citation needed Frankly I don't think people take enough drugs. We could do with a few more open minds instead of the horrific mess the squares have got us into.

And what mess might that be?

Re: Estimating Community Drug Abuse by Wastewater Analysis

#18

> The social and medical problems of drug abuse are a matter of increasing global concern. citation needed Frankly I don't think people take enough drugs. We could do with a few more open minds instead of the horrific mess the squares have got us into.

A citation wouldn't be used for that sentence, by convention, because it's in the article's abstract, rather than in the article proper.

Moreover, regardless of what you think about drug (ab)use, it is a matter of increasing global concern. That doesn't imply anything about enforcement, legalisation, etc; it's just a statement of fact.

Re: Estimating Community Drug Abuse by Wastewater Analysis

#19

> The social and medical problems of drug abuse are a matter of increasing global concern. citation needed Frankly I don't think people take enough drugs. We could do with a few more open minds instead of the horrific mess the squares have got us into.

I don't think anyone's going to argue that drug abuse is a matter of increasing concern. In America, at least, prescription drug abuse seems to be getting out of hand.

Drug use is a whole different story.

Re: Estimating Community Drug Abuse by Wastewater Analysis

#20

My mate works for a water treatment company, so he's regularly down the sewers doing stuff. His best ever comment was that he hates it in the rich towns cos the shit stinks vile. But in the poor towns it smells OK. I had always thought all shit smells the same.

I'd love for him to shove that shit into a gas chromatograph and check for objective differences.
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