The paper discusses indicators of illicit drug use, and trends in drug deaths and drug-related arrests. While the epidemiological survey data show gradual, but long-term reductions in drug use, the criminal justice data show dramatic increases in the number of persons arrested for drug offenses. Some of the discrepancies in the data can be explained by cohort differences, due to the rising age of both drug addicts and drug offenders. A large part of the increase in drug-related arrests can be attributed to enhanced law enforcement efforts. The authors conclude that the increase in drug use evident from the criminal justice statistics is an artifact of the criminalization of drugs, and that epidemiological survey data are more reliable in terms of tracking patterns of drug use. 5 tables, 11 figures, 6 notes, and 26 references