The number of young people seeking cocaine treatment has jumped by 171% between 2011 and 2019.
A new report by the Health Research Board shows the drug is becoming more popular with young Irish women, with 1 in 20 girls in this age cohort admitting to taking cocaine.
The report shows Ireland has one of the highest rates of cocaine use among young people in Europe, second only to the UK
The proportion of 15 - 24-year-old women taking the illegal drug has grown from 0.8% in 2015 to 4.5% in 2020.
Almost a third of 15 - 24 year old's have used illegal drugs between the years 2019 and 2020, while 6.8 per cent have used cocaine.
While men are still more likely to take illegal drugs, the number of young women trying cocaine has quadrupled.
Cocaine hospitalisations were up 83% between 2015 and 2019.
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