Cocaine BY MONICA HUNTER, ALANA MCDONNELL & MEGAN SHELTON 9F

Cocaine- Defenition  Cocaine is a drug that is made from coca leaves. Cocaine is white and is made up of small crystals. Most cocaine is used as an illegal drug. Because it is a stimulant. Cocaine makes people feel very happy and energetic when it is eaten, smoked, or inhaled. When used this way, cocaine is very addictive.  A bitter, crystalline alkaloid, C 17 H 21 NO 4, obtained from coca leaves, used as a local anaesthetic and also widely used as an illicit drug for its stimulant

1) How Is It Taken?  Cocaine can be smoked, rubbed onto the gums, snorted, injected, or added to food and drink, depending on the form. Alana McDonnell

2) What does it look like? 3)Why Do People use them?  2) Cocaine is generally a white crystallized powder.  3) People use drugs for so many reasons,  To fit in  To be rebellious  To feel “relaxed”  To relieve stress/anxiety  From curiosity 2) Monica Hunter 3) Megan Shelton

4) Legal Consequences In Australia  Cocaine is an illegal drug in Australia. Federal and state laws provide penalties for possessing, using, making/selling, or driving under their influence. The ‘Drugs, Poisons and controlled substances act (DPCSA) include these major offences:  Use includes smoking, inhaling of fumes, or introducing a drug of dependence into a persons body  Possession is the most common offence. Possession means you have control/custody of the drug.  Growing is the act of planting, growing or havesting a narcotic plant  Selling/exchanging is a very serious offence. It involves preparing the drug for manufacturing  Driving whilst on drugs is illegal. If you drive on drugs you are breaking the law and could have your licence taken away from you, receive heavy fines and/or jail time Monica Hunter

5) Short Term effects  Short term effects? Effects are different in every person. They will depend on the size, weight and health of the person taking cocaine, whether they are used to taking the drug, whether other drugs are present in their body, and of course, the amount taken. There is no safe level of drug use. Use of any drug always carries some risk - even medications can produce unwanted side effects. It is important to be careful when taking any type of drug. Some may include: Restless Over excited Nausea Weight loss and eating disorders Light and sound sensitivity Impaired thinking. Alana McDonnell

6) Long Term effects  The long term effects:  Becoming more dependent  Relationship, work, money, legal or housing problems.  The way a person takes cocaine over a long time can also cause problems,  If you snort cocaine that can lead to nosebleeds, sinus problems and damage to the inside of your nose.  Injecting cocaine with used or dirty needles makes you more likely to get infected with Hep C, Hep B and/or HIV, get blood poisoning and skin abscesses (sores with pus) Monica Hunter

7) Mixing Drugs  If you mix another drug with this strong drug your heart and other organs will be pushed to the limit. Eventually, your heart could give in because of the drugs you have mixed. The drugs have put a too much of a strain on your organs Alana McDonnell

8) Social effects  Aggressive behaviour  Getting into fights  Incidents occurring  Financial/ employment issues  Signs of confusion  Clouded judgement  Loss of appetite and loss of weight  Low amount of common sense Megan Shelton

9) How can you minimise the harm of taking cocaine?  Supplying small amounts  Moving all drugs from nearby surrondings  Occupying yourself with everyday activities Megan Shelton

10) Australian statistics- Deaths & Usage  7.3% of Australians over the age of 14 have taken cocaine some point in their lives  2.1% have used cocaine in the last 12 months  The average age of Australians who take cocaine is 23 years old  In 2008 there were 16 drug induced deaths in which cocaine was mentioned among the ages of Megan Shelton

11) Other names for Cocaine  Crack  Beam  Big C  Big Flake  California cornflakes  Charlie  Divits  Foo-foo dust  Gold dust  Happy dust/powder  Hydro  Coke Megan Shelton

12) Where to get help?  If you have a problem dealing with cocaine it is best to go see someone to get help as soon as possible before it gets out of control. Attending a residential treatment program may be the best way to get help for your cocaine addiction. Maybe you could also go see a therapist to help you out and make sure you area aware of the use and effects that you may have, also to help you talk and share what had happened to make you addicted. Alana McDonnell

13) Treatment  Treatment of cocaine addiction must be comprehensive, and strategies need to assess the neurobiological, social, and medical aspects of the patient's drug abuse. Patients who have a variety of addictions often have other co- occurring mental disorders that require additional behavioral or pharmacological interventions. Currently there are no proven medications to treat cocaine addiction. NIDA (National Institute of Drug Abuse) is working aggressively to identify and test new medications. Monica Hunter Presently, there are no proven medications to treat cocaine addiction. Consequently, NIDA is working aggressively to identify and test new medications.