Netherlands National Drug Monitor - Research and Documentation ...

- However, rising popularity of cocaine has been observed among (employed) rural
youth. It is also particularly popular among students, soccer fans and bar staff
(Nabben et al., 2007b; Grund et al., 2007).
- In 2009 key observers in the province of Gelderland reported that on account of its
high price, (snorting) cocaine is still mainly used by a relatively moneyed group of
substance users in the social scene (De Jong et al., 2009).
• In the social scene, cocaine is often consumed together with alcohol
- In a national survey conducted in 2008/2009, 3.9% of attendees at large-scale
parties and festivals had consumed both cocaine and alcohol on the evening in
question; 1.3% had used only cocaine (without alcohol) (Trimbos Institute/University
of Utrecht, 2010).
• The excessive use of alcohol by revellers is often quoted as one of the reasons for the
popularity of cocaine (Nabben et al., 2007b) . This is because cocaine is thought by
some drinkers to have a sobering effect, permitting the user to drink more and for
longer (Pennings et al., 2002).
Problem Youth
• In so far as data are available and comparisons can be made, crack is more widely
used by problem youth than by their peers in general, although percentages are low
(table 3.3).
• According to recent research among juveniles in Amsterdam youth care and at
national level, crack cocaine is used little in this group (Nabben et al., 2007a; Kepper
et al., 2009).
• Nonetheless, key observers have identified an upsurge in crack use among problem
youth in Gelderland (De Jong et al., 2008;2009), street kids in Den Bosch (Stoele et
al., 2005), marginalised youngsters in Eindhoven (Van ‘t Klooster et al., 2006), marginalised
youth in Maastricht (Coumans et al., 2005) and marginalised youth in Parkstad
Limburg (Van der Dam et al., 2006). However, trend data are not available.
64 Netherlands National Drug Monitor - NDM Annual Report 2009