LONDON, Aug. 13 (Xinhua) -- A generation of Britons born in the 1960s and 1970s, also known as Generation X, are dying from suicide or drug using in greater numbers, said a report published Tuesday by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
ONS data from England and Wales has shown that in the late 1980s to early 1990s, most people died by suicide or drug poisoning were concentrated around this generation, when they were in their 20s.
Since that time, deaths from these two causes have continued to affect the same generation, who are currently in their 40s and 50s to a higher rate than any other generation, said the report, adding that the United States and Canada have also seen this effect.
Trying to explain reasons behind this effect, Public Health England said one possible explanation could be that this generation has a higher proportion of long-term heroin users with failing health.
There was an upturn in the use of hard drugs such as heroin by a generation of young Britons in the 1980s and 1990s, said the report.
