According to the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, there are at least 23,000,000 drug addicts in the United States. The most recent US census estimates our country’s population to be a little more than 300,000,000.

This means 13% of Americans are struggling with addiction.

No wonder 13 is considered an unlucky number!

These are people we know—family members and friends. They’re people we see in our neighborhoods, supermarkets, school campuses, government offices—just about everywhere there are people, there are people dealing with drug addiction. If you’re reading this, chances are you or someone you care about is part of that segment of the population.

How can we help these people?

In 1972, then-president Richard Nixon declared a national “War On Drugs.” At the time, that new domestic policy received widespread media attention. New laws were enacted. Enforcement efforts against those who trafficked in the drug trade were stepped up. Penalties for possession of drugs were increased. Government programs were put in place to treat those who were addicted.

These were all noble attempts, undertaken by people with sincere intentions, to accomplish laudable goals: keeping our nation’s citizens (especially children and young adults) from becoming involved with substances that, quite literally, drain the life out of those who use or abuse them.

More than three decades after this war was declared, the evidence that we’re winning is mixed. We frequently see news reports about seizures of staggering amounts of cocaine, marijuana and other street drugs, with estimated values in the millions of dollars. It’s common to hear stories about local police forces raiding home-based meth labs in neighborhoods stretching from South Central Los Angeles to the South Beach area of Miami.

These events are reassuring, giving us hope that this is a battle that can be won. Fewer drugs on the street means fewer people on drugs.

But what about the people who are already addicted?

Of those 23,000,000 Americans who are addicts, only an estimated 3,000,000 will ever receive treatment. Those are the lucky people—they’re lucky enough to get the help they need to break the chains of addiction.

Do you want to be one of the lucky ones? Is there someone in your life who could use a lucky break? If so, call (800) 344-8794 for information on effective drug rehab programs in your area.