New federal data has shown that deaths related to heroin have increased in the US. It has been informed that deaths associated with heroin quadrupled within just three years.

It has been revealed by the new report from the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) that from 2010 to 2013 deaths from drug poisoning including heroin increased four-fold from 0.7 deaths per 100,000 people to 2.7 deaths per 100,000 people. It was found that the rate was about four times higher among men as compared with women in 2013.

The increase in heroin-related drug poisoning deaths has been seen in all age groups, races and ethnic groups. In the US, every region has faced an increase, and the biggest increase has taken place in the Midwest. America's growing painkiller problem could also be responsible for the spike.

According to another report that the NCHS released last month, more people over age 20 are making use of opioids. It has been informed that the number of people who make use of a painkiller stronger as compared to morphine rose from 17% to 37% from the early 2000s to about a decade later.

Dr. Andrew Kolodny, the chief medical officer of the Phoenix House, a national nonprofit drug and alcohol rehabilitation organization said that people who are hooked on painkillers could move to heroin as it's not costly and also doesn't require a prescription.

"We are seeing heroin deaths sky rocketing because we have an epidemic of people addicted to opioids. There are new markets like suburbs where heroin didn't used to exist", said Kolodny.

According to previous data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it was found that painkillers are increasing problem. Last year, it has been informed by CDC that physicians wrote 259 million painkiller prescriptions in a single year.