A new study has found that over half of all homeless people in Ireland are using drugs.
The country’s first major report on drug use and homelessness has revealed that the two issues are clearly linked and aggravate each other. The study carried out by the National Advisory Committee on Drugs involved 355 homeless people.
It found that almost three quarters of people living on the streets use alcohol in a hazardous way, with almost a quarter of them taking heroin. It also found that one in four of them uses five or more drugs.
On average those surveyed said they first started taking drugs when they were 15, with the youngest starting when they were only seven years old.
Family conflict is the main reason for people becoming homeless, according to the report. Almost one third of homeless people had been diagnosed with a psychiatric illness.
The report also found that homeless people who took drugs were often excluded from homeless services because they were on drugs.
