Alcohol Ireland's leading addiction among those seeking treatment from services, new report shows

'Alcohol and cocaine remain the most prominent substances for which people are seeking help, and demand for our services — especially for women and families — remains incredibly high,' Coolmine chief executive Pauline McKeown said

Alcohol remains the leading national addiction, but cocaine is now the biggest addiction problem in the east of the country.

A new report on addiction trends produced by Coolmine Therapeutic Community, the drug and alcohol treatment service, covers the first half of the year and shows demand for treatment services remains at record-high levels.

The data shows alcohol accounted for 40% of all presentations to its services so far this year, a slight increase from 37% during the same period in 2024.

Cocaine is next, accounting for 31% of presentations, followed by cannabis at 11%, benzodiazepines at 9%, and heroin accounting for 8% of presentations.

But the report also found notable differences in regional trends, with alcohol the most common substance in the south-west of the country, accounting for 53% of presentations, and at 34% in the mid-west.

Cocaine remains the leading substance in the east of the country, at 36%.

A total of 1,969 clients accessed treatment and support through Coolmine in the first half of the year, virtually unchanged from the record-setting demand experienced in 2024.

Coolmine chief executive Pauline McKeown said this suggested elevated service levels had become the new norm for addiction treatment in Ireland.

“Alcohol and cocaine remain the most prominent substances for which people are seeking help, and demand for our services — especially for women and families — remains incredibly high," she said.

“Our teams continue to meet this need with compassion and professionalism. At Coolmine, we believe in the power of recovery and are committed to ensuring people across Ireland can access the support they need to transform their lives."

A breakdown of the treatment figures shows nationally, 57% of clients were men and 43% women, reflecting an increase in female engagement compared to 2024.

Coolmine supported 305 families across its services so far this year, with 37 parents involved in its Parents under Pressure (PuP) programme, and it has 35 children living with a parent in treatment.

A total of 1,794 children were directly impacted by parental substance use and received support, the report shows.

Coolmine also said its residential and community services were nearing full capacity, with Ashleigh House, its dedicated residential programme for women and mothers with young children, and Coolmine Lodge, the male residential therapeutic community, operating at 100% occupancy.

Its Dublin-based outreach services saw a 15.6% increase in presentations, with 414 individuals supported through the Assertive Traveller Outreach, Private Emergency Accommodations Team, and Genio programmes in the first half of the year, with a significant portion of the demand linked to housing and emergency accommodation.

“The sustained pressure on our residential and outreach services shows the scale of need we are responding to every day. We are seeing more people, from more backgrounds, reaching out for support,” Ms McKeown said.