Heroin: It’s a guy thing

Two area sheriffs held a news conference today to highlight a growing prevalence of heroin in the metro.

Twenty-two people died of a heroin overdose in 2009, a significant jump over the 14 who died in 2008. Almost all of those who died over that time were white men. Thirty-four of the deaths were men; 30 were white, according to Richard Stanek, the sheriff of Hennepin County. The largest increase was among people 36 to 45 years old.

Stanek was a guest this morning on MPR’s Morning Edition.