In Europe, as many as 4.2% of those aged 15 to 24 have taken LSD at least once. When surveyed, the percentage of people in this age group who had used LSD in the past year exceeded 1% in seven countries (Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Italy, Latvia, Hungary and Poland).

In America, since 1975, researchers funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse have annually surveyed nearly 17,000 high school seniors nationwide to determine trends in drug use and to measure the students’ attitudes and beliefs about drug abuse. Between 1975 and 1997, the lowest period of LSD use was reported by the class of 1986, when 7.2% of high school seniors reported using LSD at least once in their lives.

The percentage of seniors reporting LSD use at least once over the course of the prior year nearly doubled from a low of 4.4% in 1985 to 8.4% in 1997. In 1997, 13.6% of seniors had experimented with LSD at least once in their lives.

A study released in January 2008 found that about 3.1 million people in the US aged 12 to 25 said they had used LSD.

“I started hanging out at strip clubs, casinos and became very promiscuous, visiting brothel after brothel and soon to be introduced to other drugs.

“I had now lost all my inheritance and had to move into a crack house where I stayed for a year watching people die, losing my business and becoming a thief.

“I was arrested in November 2003 for attempted hijacking and went to prison.

“I had hurt and lost everyone that loved me and I was disowned.

“I ended up homeless and on the streets living and sleeping in a cardboard box by the [train] station, begging and struggling to find ways to get my next meal.” —Fred