Drug abuse is on the rise among young people in China. Ahead of the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, CCTV's reporter Ai Yang takes a look at how some people are battling on this issue.

36-year-old Mr. Ren from Beijing has received an award for successfully quitting drugs. He was a long time drug user. But with professional help, he's turning a new page in his life.

"I first tried heroin 18 years ago. I didn't know its danger at the time. I thought it was cool to do drugs. In the past ten years I have quit several times but started doing it again after some time. Drugs are powerful things. No matter what promises you make to quit, they're all empty words in the end. But in the past two years I've come to understand a lot more about life, and I've found peace in my heart," Mr. Ren said.

Ren says that twenty years ago most drug addicts were either jobless or rich businessmen with little education background.

These days drug users are getting younger and more diverse. Students, professors, actors and office workers have all been caught using new drugs such as meth and ecstacy. According to the Beijing drug control commission, by May this year, there were 25,000 registered drug addicts in the city. More than 70 percent of them are under the age of 35.

"25,000 is just a small portion compared to those that haven't been detected by our radar. It's likely there are 5 or even ten times more drug users in the city. Especially with new types of drugs coming out, younger people get hooked. More than 60 percent of the patients who voluntarily came to be institutionalized had abused these drugs," Police officer Zhao Haiqing said.

For those who have already quit, the next big challenge is returning to normal life, and being accepted.

"We try to help former drug addicts repair relations with families and friends. But also we have to find them simple work such as working in the community, so that they can support themselves. Local governments also provide vocational training so they will not go back to their old habits because they feel abandoned by society. On the other hand there must be more public education for younger people so they're informed about drugs," Police officer Jin Tao said.

Beijing is working on improving awareness on drug avoidance, especially among China's youths. As the report points out, drug users in the city are getting younger, there must be more education in grassroots communities so that people learn the consequences of drug abuse from a young age.

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