Youth drug deaths double in Finland: Experts call for urgent action

New data from Statistics Finland paints a grim picture of rising drug-related deaths in Finland, particularly among young people. In 2023, drug overdoses claimed the lives of 310 individuals, including 91 under the age of 25. Among 15–24-year-olds, drugs were the cause of death in one out of every four cases, marking a near doubling of fatalities in this age group compared to the previous year.

“The time to act is now,” write Robert Koski and Jarmo Kantonen, experts in substance abuse prevention.