Substance abuse affects hundreds of millions of people around the world. It can be a debilitating and destructive force in people's lives and cause them to negatively affect not only themselves but those around them. There are many different reasons for the prevalence of substance abuse and the effects these substances have on people. Different drugs affect individuals in many different ways, but substance abuse can often be linked both directly and indirectly to criminal activity. These reasons include, but are not limited to, pharmacological, psychological, and social variables involved in substance abuse and are what lead to the association between drugs and crime. It is estimated that in 2010 between 153 and 300 million people aged between 15 and 15 years. 64 have used an illicit drug at least once ("World Drug Report 2012," 2012). Substances considered illicit are illegal ones such as marijuana, amphetamines, cocaine and opiates. However, the minimum and maximum estimates are quite widespread, it must be remembered that some of these estimates come from remote countries and regions where statistical data are not available or are very unreliable. However, this number is very alarming because it means that it is between 3.4% and 6.6% of the total. The world's population between the ages of 15 and 64 has used illicit drugs. Approximately 12% of these users are dependent on drugs or suffer from some type of drug disorder (“World Drug Report 2012,” 2012). A separate study conducted in the United States by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration estimated that approximately 22.6 million Americans over the age of 12 use illicit drugs (Bartol & Bartol, 478). The......middle of paper......NC. Retrieved from http://www.ncadd.org/index.php/for-youth/drugs-and-crime/230-alcohol-drugs-and-crimeBartol & Bartol,, CR, & Bartol & Bartol,, AM (2014 ). Criminal behavior: a psychosocial approach. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education.Benet, Hess, & Orthamnn,, C. M., Hess, K. M., Cho, H. L., & Bennett, W. W. (2013). Criminal investigation. Clifton Park, NY: Delmar Cengage Learning.Synthetic Drugs (aka K2, Spice, Bath Salts, etc.) Office of National Drug Control Policy (n.d.). The White House. Retrieved from Whitehouse website: http://www.whitehouse.gov/ondcp/ondcp-fact-sheets/synthetic-drugs-k2-spice-bath-saltsWORLD DRUG REPORT 2012: RECENT STATISTICS AND ANALYSIS OF DRUG MARKET TRENDS ILLEGAL DRUGS. (2012). Retrieved from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime website: http://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/WDR2012/WDR_2012_Chapter1.pdf