Health-conscious Gen Zs shun drugs as cannabis use among students nearly plunges to all-time low while hippy crack inhalation halves in a year… but 16-24 year olds ARE taking more ketamine, shrooms and LSD

Drug use among students has fallen to a ten-year low, with cannabis, hippie crack and ecstasy falling massively out of favor among Gen Z.

Official figures released today show that one in six 16-24 year olds used illicit substances in the year ending March 2023.

By comparison, in the late 1990s, almost a third of Gen X students experimented with drugs like ecstasy and cocaine during their party years.

The Office for National Statistics report reflects a raft of data showing that society's youngest cohort is drinking less alcohol and avoiding red meat.

Experts suggested that current pressures on incomes, the disruptive effect of Covid and changes in drug pricing may also have had an impact on drug use.

The figures show that ecstasy use among 16 to 24 year olds fell to a record low.

Only 2.4 percent said they had used the drug, also known as MDMA, in the past year. At the turn of the century, rates were twice as high.

ONS experts did not explain what was behind the decline.

However, it comes amid a spike in the number of teenagers dying from taking the pills in nightclubs, at parties and on holidays.

Hippy crack use also fell to an all-time low, with only 4.2 percent admitting to inhaling nitrous oxide in the past year, compared to nine percent six years ago.

Nitrous oxide, sold in disposable silver canisters littering the streets and parks of Britain, is put into balloons and inhaled to create a temporary feeling of relaxation and euphoria.

The downturn comes amid warnings about its top side effects including dizziness, leg weakness and impaired memory.

The ONS report, based on a survey of more than 31,000 people and collected by the Crime Survey for England and Wales, took place before the government's ban on hippie crack.

In November, under plans to tackle the scourge of anti-social behaviour, the drug was classified as a controlled Class C drug, making it illegal to possess nitrous oxide.

Cannabis use also fell among teenagers, although it was still the most popular, the ONS figures showed.

Cocaine use also decreased slightly (from 5.3 percent in 2020 to 5.1 percent).

However, rates are still three times higher than in the 1990s, in a trend that clinics have attributed to the white powder's increased popularity among the middle class, and the fact that it is cheaper and easier to obtain than pizza.

The overall decline was “mainly driven” by men, the data suggested.

Use of LSD (1.5 percent) and magic mushrooms (1.9 percent).however, went up.

Class B ketamine also recorded its highest level ever (3.8 percent), up a fifth from 2020.

Special K, Ket or Kit Kat was popular as a party drug in the late 1990s, when it was often taken at late-night raves.

But its popularity declined in the 2000s when it became a Schedule III drug and concerns arose about side effects, including hallucinations and, in rare cases, seizures.

Campaigners are calling it a 'campus killer', which has been linked to dozens of deaths in recent years.

There was also a slight increase in opioid use (0.2 percent) compared to 2020 (0.1 percent). These include medications such as Fentanyl and painkillers that are legally available by prescription.

Experts called the overall decline “encouraging” but warned the figures “could mask worrying new trends in drug use.”

Ian Hamilton, associate professor of addiction at the University of York, told MailOnline that the data “reflects the ever-changing popularity of illicit drugs.”

He said: 'Some changes will reflect the availability and pricing of medicines as some become more affordable and easily available.

'The rise of hallucinogens such as LSD and mushrooms could reflect not only greater availability, but also the perception that they are less dangerous, as some social media platforms and companies promote their healing properties.

'Unfortunately, it is unlikely that any health benefit will be derived from illegal supply.'

He added: 'I suspect that the recent widely reported problems with nitrous oxide could have an impact on their popularity, as some people may be more wary of risking problems such as nerve damage, which affects a small proportion of those who using the substance has affected.

'It's important to look at overall trends in drug use, rather than just a single year. What is clear is that women continue to catch up with men in overall drug use, something that policy makers and those providing specialist drug treatment must consider and act on.”

Meanwhile, David Fothergill, chairman of the Local Government Association's community wellbeing board, said: 'While it is encouraging that drug abuse rates have remained stable, this masks worrying new trends in drug use.

'We are particularly concerned about the increase in the use of new synthetic opioids and benzodiazepines, which substantially increase the risk of incredibly serious harm to the user and are believed to be linked to a number of drug-related deaths.'

Benzodiazepines include Xanax and Valium, addictive prescription drugs.

The ONS' report, which was suspended during Covid, also records wider use in society, including how often they were used.

Figures show that there is little change in use among 16 to 59 year olds (9.5 percent) compared to 2020.

The decline in drug use among 16- to 24-year-olds comes as studies have repeatedly shown that Gen Zers are also much more likely to ditch alcohol, meat and even gasoline cars than previous generations.

Data shows they are less likely to turn to alcohol, drinking 20 percent less per capita than even millennials.

Class A drug use in England and Wales is estimated to cost British taxpayers more than £15 billion, mainly due to drug-related crime, according to a Home Office report.

Under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, drugs are classified into three different classes.

Substances such as cocaine and crack, ecstasy, MDMA and heroin fall under class A, while codeine, ketamine and cannabis fall under class B.

The so-called 'date rape' drug GHB, anabolic steroids and the stimulant khat are now class C drugs.

Under current drug laws, those found in possession of Class A drugs can expect a prison sentence of seven years, an unlimited fine, or both. Anyone caught supplying or producing could face life imprisonment, an unlimited fine or both.

People caught in possession of Class Bs face a five-year prison sentence, while anyone caught carrying Class Cs could face a two-year prison sentence.