Alcohol usage globally
Alcohol is consumed on a large global scale (Figure 1). Areas such as Europe see the highest general usage while Africa and Asia see lower levels of usage, however anomalies such as Uganda can be seen. Uganda has the highest usage globally with it using 19.47 Litres per capita with the mean alcohol usage globally being 4.85 litres per capita.Figure 1. An interactive map displaying Alcohol use (Litres per capita) globally
Alcohols influence on global happiness
Figure 2. Alcohols influence on countries happiness score
Alcohol usage can be seen as playing a role in the happiness score of a country as illustrated by Figure 2.The Loess curve (Figure 2) illustrates that an increase in alcohol usage leads to an increase in the happiness score of a country until a certain point (12.63 Litres per capita usage) in which further alcohol use leads to a decline in the happiness score of countries.
Figure 3. An interactive map displaying % of countries populations which use Cocaine globally
Cocaine is a stimulant drug derived from the leaves of coca plants. Cocaine’s highest usage can be seen in North America and the Southern regions of South America. The country with the highest usage is Spain with 3% of the population using cocaine (Figure 3). The mean use of cocaine is 0.68% of a countries population.
Figure 4. An interactive map displaying % of countries populations which use Cannabis globally
Cannabis is a psychoactive drug derived from the cannabis plant. The country with the highest % use is Ghana with 21.5% of the countries population using cannabis. Regions such as North America also see high usage (Figure 4). The mean global usage of cannabis is 4.47% of a countries population which is the highest mean use out of cocaine, cannabis, amphetamines and opiates.
Figure 5. An interactive map displaying % of countries populations which use Amphetamines globally
Amphetamines are a stimulant drug derived from phenethylamines. High amphetamine usage is seen in Oceania with countries such as Australia seeing the highest global usage at 2.7% of the population (Figure 5). The mean amphetamines use globally is 0.62% of each countries population.
Figure 6. An interactive map displaying % of countries populations which use Opiates globally
Opiates are strong pain killers derived from the opium poppy plant with opiates used on a global scale. The country with the highest opiate usage can be seen as Russia with 1.64% of the population using opiates (Figure 6). The mean opiates use is 0.34% globally which is the lowest mean usage out of cocaine, cannabis, amphetamines and opiates.
Figure 7. An interactive scatterplot illustrating how total drug use influences a countries happiness score
An increase in Total drug use can be seen as leading to a general increase in a countries happiness score to a certain point (Figure 7). The Loess curve illustrates that the total drug use % which leads to the highest happiness score is 13.54% and 14.75% with this leading to a happiness score of 7.03.
However, when total drug use reaches 14.75% or more the happiness score will decrease as illustrated by the Loess curve. Example: Ghana has the highest total drug use at 22.74% but a low happiness score of 5.7.
Figure 7 in comparison to figure 2 illustrates a much steeper Loess curve.
Figure 8. Interactive scatter graph illustrating each countries drug with the highest % population usage to the countries happiness score
Figure 8 illustrates that most countries most popular drug is cannabis. Countries which have cannabis as their most used drug in some cases have a higher happiness score with all countries scoring a happiness score of above 7.3 seeing cannabis as their most used drug (Figure 8). This could indicate that cannabis is the best drug to increase a countries happiness score.
However, cannabis does not guarantee a higher happiness score with countries such as Ghana, Zambia and the US seeing high % of the population using cannabis however the happiness scores remain below 5.7. This illustrates that potentially the level of drug use in a country is not the reason for that countries happiness score and that there are other factors which influence a countries happiness score.
Therefore Figure 8 illustrates no clear trend that one drug is better at guaranteeing a higher happiness score.
Conclusion: Do drugs and alcohol make the world a happier place?
In conclusion, an increase in use of drugs such as cocaine, cannabis, amphetamines and opiates and an increase in alcohol use can in some some cases lead to an increase in a countries happiness score (Figure 2, 7). However, Figure 2 and Figure 7 also illustrate that if alcohol and drug use surpasses a threshold then it can lead to a decline in a countries happiness score.
Furthermore the health impacts of drugs and alcohol use are not taken into consideration with use of drugs and alcohol leading to risks ranging from minor injuries to death via heart attacks (cocaine), overdosing, liver failure(alcohol). These health risks should be considered when assessing the impact drugs and alcohol can have on the happiness of a country.
Figure 2, Figure 7 and Figure 8 also failed to consider other factors such as GDP per capita, Healthcare and education which influence the happiness score of a country. These factors which were included may be the reasoning behind each countries happiness score.
Overall, the trend that an increase in drug and alcohol use up to a certain threshold leads to a country having a greater happiness score (Figure 2, Figure 7) has to be taken with a pinch of salt due to figure 2, 7 and 8 ommiting important factors which influence a countries happiness score.
I did use AI: Below is my Ai usage document including a summary and all inputs/ outputs from copilot https://durhamuniversity-my.sharepoint.com/:w:/g/personal/jjtb72_durham_ac_uk/IQAYJCYWqDcfRqsHPyIcpmSVAdGTYrS8df_e--9gNrC4eA0?e=EHsXfX