NZers drinking less booze; doing other drugs more

The rumours are true: New Zealanders are drinking less than at any time since we began keeping track. Meanwhile, cocaine use has reached record levels (according to wastewater testing), methamphetamine is cheaper than at any point since Massey University began tracking prices in 2017, and illicit drugs generally cost far less in real terms than in 2017.

So, are New Zealanders putting down the beers in favour of cutting up lines? Unfortunately, the available data can't show that. What it does suggest though, says Dr Rose Crossin of the University of Otago's Department of Public Health in Christchurch, is simpler: many people want to alter their state of mind, and the real questions are which drug they choose, and why.

Read more at thespinoff.co.nz.

Directed, filmed and edited by Isaiah Tour.
Written and presented by Robbie Nicol, adapted from the article by Henry Oliver.
Made with the support of NZ On Air.