COMMONLY ABUSED DRUGS

1. COMMONLY ABUSED DRUGS

2. Depressants • Drugs are categorized according to their actions and effects on the body • DEPRESSANT: psychoactive drug that slows down the brain and body reactions • Decrease heart and breathing rates; lower blood pressure

3. Depressants: Barbiturates • BARBITURATES: “sedative hypnotics” ( act as sedatives to relax a person/downers) • In high doses, are hypnotics; induce sleep; seizure control (used as an anesthetic) • Physicians rarely prescribe barbiturates for sleep problems because they are more dangerous and have a high potential for abuse (stronger than tranquilizers) ex. phenobarbital • Barbiturate abuse develops a tolerance to the drug quickly • Walk slowly, slur speech, react more slowly to environment • Withdrawal can be fatal

4. Depressants: CNS Depressants • Sedative that slows down the activity of the Central Nervous System • Used to be called “tranquilizers” • Slow nerve activity, relax muscle tension, lower alertness, cause drowsiness • Replaces barbiturates for medical uses • Treats anxiety, sleep disorders, muscle spasms, convulsions • Can cause tolerance and dependence • Ex. Xanax, Valium

5. Depressants: Opiates • OPIATE: Any drug made from psychoactive compounds contained in the seed pods of the poppy plants • In small doses, act to dull senses, relieve pain, and induce sleep • “morphine” and “codeine” are used in some prescription medications to reduce severe pain • Morphine and Codeine can produce tolerance and lead to dependence

6. Depressants: Opiates (cont) • Growing area of concern is the use of opiate containing painkillers or cough syrups for a “high” • Involves taking a larger dose then recommended on label • Can be life threatening • HEROIN: illegal opiate made from morphine in a laboratory • Highly addictive • Users appear dazed and disoriented

8. Depressants • BARBITURATES: • Side Effects: poor coordination, slurred speech, decreased alertness • Long term effects: sleepiness, irritability, confusion • CNS DEPRESSANTS: • Side Effects: blurred vision, dizziness, slurred speech, drowsiness, headache, skin rash • Long term effects: blood and liver disease

9. Depressants • OPIATES: • Side Effects: Nausea, vomiting, decreased alertness, drowsiness, depressed respiration • Long term effects: constipation, infections associated with injecting • ALCOHOL: • Side Effects: Impaired judgment, decreased alertness, lack of coordination, memory problems, vomiting • Long term effects: liver damage, brain damage, anxiety and depression, malnutrition, memory loss

10. Stimulants • STIMULANT: drug that speeds up activities in the CNS • Increase heart rate, blood pressure, breathing rate, alertness • Sometimes prescribed to treat sleep disorders and behavioral disorders such as ADHD • Abusers may develop tolerance, dependence, and addiction

11. Stimulants: Amphetamines • Amphetamines: prescription drugs that are sometimes sold illegally as “speed” or “uppers” • (treatment for conditions such as ADHD and narcolepsy) • Produce feelings of high energy and well being • Effects wear off VERY quickly; user is left feeling depressed • “Down” effect often leads to taking another dose (results in dependence)

12. Stimulants: Methamphetamines • METHAMPHETAMINES: stimulant related to amphetamines; made from relatively inexpensive over the counter ingredients in illegal labs called “meth labs” • Produces as rush or high, but after it wears off the user becomes confused, shaky, anxious, irritable, violent • Ultimately become paranoid and psychotic due to brain damage • May also cause strokes and deadly convulsions

13. Examples of Chemicals used to make Meth…. • Ether • Benzene • Methanol • Methylene Chloride • Trichloroethylene • Toluene • Muriatic Acid • Sodium Hydroxide • Anhydrous Ammonia • Red Phosphorous • Iodine • Reactive Metals • Table Salt • Ammonia • Pseudoephedrine • Hydrochloric Acid • Drain Cleaner • Battery Acid • Lye • Lantern Fuel • Anti-Freeze

15. Scan of normal brain vs scan of a meth brain

19. Stimulants: Cocaine • COCAINE: powerful, short-acting stimulating that is sniffed through the nose, smokes, or injected • Highly addictive/tolerance develops rapidly • Overdoses can result in seizures, heart failure, or respiratory failure • When effects wear off abusers are usually left with depression • “Free basing”- changes cocaine into a concentrated smoke able form called “crack” • Strongest form of cocaine • Short but powerful effects occur within 8 seconds after smoking

21. Crack Cocaine -Baking soda (Sodium Bicarbonate replaces Diethyl-ether) to make crack cocaine. -Cheaper Term “crack” comes from the sound generated when it is being made and smoked)

22. Stimulants • Amphetamines: • Side effects: restlessness, rapid speech, blurred vision, dizziness • Long term effects: hyperactivity, irritability, irregular heart rates, liver damage, paranoia • Methamphetamines: • Side effects: increased respiration, elevated body temp, convulsions, stroke • Long term effects: psychotic behavior, memory loss, aggression, brain damage, heart damage, severe tooth and gym decay, stroke

23. Stimulants • Cocaine: • Side effects: sleep disorders, loss of appetite, increased BP and HR • Long term effects: Depression, paranoia, irritability, weight loss, irregular heart beat, seizures, respiratory failure, cardiovascular failure, liver damage • Nicotine/Tobacco Smoke: • Side effects: Nausea, loss of appetite, headache, increased BP • Long term effects: hacking cough, difficulty breathing, increased number of colds, heart and lung disease

24. Hallucinogens • HALLUCINOGEN: drug that distorts perceptions, thoughts, and moods • Overload the brain with sensory information, causing a distorted sense of reality • Illegal; no medical use • Can produce frightening unpredictable mood swings • Abusers cant always tell what is real • Experience memory loss, personality changes, unable to perform normal activities, lose track of time and surroundings • Tolerance develops quickly

25. Hallucinogens: LSD • LSD: Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (“acid”) either stimulate or depress the nervous system • Abusers experience hallucinations in which they may see colorful visions and mistakenly feel that they have superhuman powers • Shortens attention spans; mind may wander • May cause “bad trips”- frightening episodes or “flashbacks”- reoccurrence of a bad trip sometimes years after LSD was taken

26. LSD forms: powder, crystal, liquid, gelatin squares, laced on a sugar cube and capsules, blotter paper dipped in LSD

27. Hallucinogens: Psilocybin • PSILOCYBIN: (“shrooms”) chemical found in certain types of mushrooms • Eat raw or mixed with food • Effects much like LSD, but not as strong • Tolerance develops quickly • Sometimes similar looking but deadly mushrooms are mistaken for psilocybin

29. Hallucinogens: PCP • PCP: “phencyclidine” white powder that can be smoked with tobacco or marijuana, injected, sniffed, or eaten • One of the most dangerous of all drugs; once used as an anesthetic or painkiller for large animals • Eliminates the sensation of pain; sometimes abusers may unintentionally injure or kill themselves • Can develop signs of schizophrenia • Effects remain long after drug use ends; flashbacks may occur

31. Marijuana • MARIJUANA: leaves, stems, and flowering tops of the hemp plant • Known as pot, dope, weed, grass • Smokes in a pipe or from a joint, or mixed with food and eaten • Hemp plant is also source of the drug hashish, or “hash”

34. Effects of Marijuana • One of the most frequently abuse psychoactive drugs • Main ingredients change the way information reaches and is acted upon by the brain • Side effects: distorted perceptions, difficulty thinking and problem solving, loss of motor coordination, increased HR, feelings of anxiety/paranoia • May permanently damage the brain • Users damage short term memory and lose motivation to perform at school/work • Increases risk of certain cancers

35. Facts About Marijuana • May act as a depressant, stimulant, or hallucinogen • Has lasting negative health effects • May be deadly if combined with alcohol or another depressant

36. Marijuana and Driving • Because it acts as a depressant, users feel sleepy or drowsy • Can make it difficult to judge distances and react quickly to signals and sounds on the road • Driving is extremely dangerous when under the influence of marijuana

37. Gateway to Other Drugs • Gateway Drug: marijuana is often a gateway to using other “harder” drugs such as cocaine • Users build up tolerance, may seek out other drugs to experience the high they first got from marijuana • Likely to be in contact with people who use and sell other illegal drugs • Almost all young people who use other illegal drugs first used marijuana

38. Club Drugs • Got their name from the fact that they first gained popularity at dance clubs and raves • Widely available; strength and quality of club drugs are highly unpredictable • Effects are different from person to person and can be very dangerous

39. Club Drugs (cont) • Some people are unknowing victims of club drugs • Ex. Rohypnol (date rape drug) can be slipped into someone's drink without the person knowing • Person may be hurt or raped and not be able to recall the events later on • Most severe when it is taken with an alcoholic drink (synergism of combining two depressants)

40. MDMA (Ecstasy) • Activates serotonin system • The serotonin system plays an important role in regulating mood, aggression, sexual activity, sleep, and sensitivity to pain. • Immediate Effects: Muscle tension, involuntary teeth clenching, nausea, blurred vision, faintness, chills, sweating, increased heart rate and blood pressure • Long term: Psychosis, confusion, depression, sleep problems, drug craving, and severe anxiety

42. Inhalants • INHALANTS: breathable chemical vapor that produces mind-altering effects • Some have appropriate medical uses (nitrous oxide-used by dentists) • Abusing inhalants including glue and household cleaners, may product feelings of brief excitement or giddiness • Very harmful, sign that oxygen in the inhaled breath has been replaced with a chemical that has either stimulated the heart or depressed brain function • Even a single session may result in cardiac arrest or suffocation

45. Anabolic Steroids • Synthetic drugs that are similar to the hormone testosterone • Legal uses of this drug include treating growth disorders and certain types of anemia • Abuse by people who want bigger muscles • Extremely dangerous for teenagers, whose growing bodies can suffer permanent damage