It is a fact that men are more likely than women to have opportunities to use drugs. Both women and are equally likely test out drugs for the first time and to then progress from initial or experimental use to addiction. But men and women seem to differ in their vulnerability to some specific drugs.
Both are equally likely to become addicted to or dependent on cocaine, heroin, hallucinogens, tobacco, and inhalants.
Women are more likely than men to become addicted to or dependent on sedatives and drugs designed to treat anxiety or sleeplessness, and less likely than men to abuse alcohol and marijuana. There are also differences between men and women who seek treatment for drug abuse. Women in treatment programs are less likely than men to have graduated from high school and to be employed and are more likely than men to have other health problems, to have sought previous drug treatment, to have attempted suicide, and to have suffered sexual abuse or other physical abuse.
