ALCOHOL TOBACCO UPPERS, DOWNERS & ALL AROUNDERS DRUGS

› A drug is any substance other than food that changes a person’s physical or psychological state. What is a Drug?

›Drugs can: Alter(change) mood Slow down reaction time Impair thinking ability Effect formation of memory Distort judgment Cause lung cancer & heart disease Create problems with the law Effect of Drugs on the Body

›Drugs do not provide the body with any nutrients that are necessary for life. ›Drugs can be found in foods and beverages as well. ›For example: ____________ What Is a Drug?

›Drugs can be taken  Orally (by mouth)  Chewing  Injection (by hypodermic needles)  Smoking  Inhaling (by breathing)  Transdermal patch  Taking Drugs…

›Many drugs are used as medicine. ›A medicine is a substance used to treat disease, injury, or pain. ›Medicines can be obtained in two ways:  Prescription  Over the counter The Use of Drug as Medicine

 Drug abuse is misusing a legal drug on purpose or using any illegal drug.  Misuse of a drug involves taking too much of the drug. Drug Abuse

 People abuse drugs for many reasons:  They like how the drug makes them feel  They feel the drug helps them perform better  To escape their problems Drug Abuse

›Drug addiction is the uncontrollable use of a drug even if it is harming a person’s health and/or relationships. ›Dependency on a drug means needing the drug in order to function properly. ›Withdrawal is the negative symptoms that result when a drug-dependant person stops using a drug. What Is Addiction?

Physical dependency is the body’s chemical need for a drug. Stopping to use the drug will take the body into withdrawal. Psychological dependency is a person’s emotional or mental need for drug. Stopping to use the drug will cause craving for the drug. It is harder to overcome psychological dependency than physical dependency. Dependency

Some problems related to drug abuse: –Problems with family and friends –Problems at school –Money problems –Health problems –Problems with the law The Consequences of Drug Abuse

Drugs are classified as:  Stimulants (uppers)  Cocaine, crack cocaine, methamphetamine,  Depressants (downers)  Alcohol, heroin, morphine,  Hallucinogens  PCP, LSD, mushroom, Types of Drugs

›Stimulants are drugs that speed up the activities of the body. ›Stimulants  increase  heart rate, blood pressure, breathing rate, blood sugar level, and tight blood vessels. ›All of these changes make the user feel more awake and alert. ›Dangers of using stimulants include heart failure, brain damage, and stroke. ›Caffeine, nicotine, cocaine, and methamphetamine are examples of stimulants. Stimulants

›Depressants are drugs like tranquilizers that slow down the body’s activities. ›Depressants  reduce  heart rate, blood pressure, and breathing; causing the person to feel relaxed, sleepy and slow. ›Depressants are extremely addictive and they can cause heart failure, brain damage, and death. ›Alcohol, heroin, and pain killers such as Vicodin and Methadone are examples of depressants. ›Narcotics like morphine, heroin and codeine are depressants that relieve pain and dull the senses Depressants

›Hallucinogens are drugs that cause a person to sense things that are not real or do not exist. ›The user may feel several emotions at once, panic, or act dangerously. ›A long-term effect of hallucinogens is having a sudden flashback of reliving the hallucinogen experience (even months or years later). ›LSD, magic mushrooms and PCP are examples of hallucinogens. Hallucinogens

›Marijuana is the dried flowers of the Cannabis plant. It has many street names like pot, grass, weed, green, and Mary Jane. ›The active chemical in marijuana is THC. ›The effect of marijuana on a person depends on the amount of THC the flower has in it. ›Major effects of marijuana are: – Inability to focus – Poor coordination – Lack of motivation – Slow reaction time Marijuana

›Alcohol is a depressant drug. ›Alcohol is the oldest of all drugs. ›Is alcohol a legal drug? ›Short term effects include inhibiting the central nervous system, making it difficult to operate heavy machinery. ›Long term effects can be fatal and include withdrawal – this can cause anxiety, seizures and hallucinations. Alcohol

›Heroin is a drug that is semi-synthetic. It is synthetically derived from morphine, which is a painkiller created from the poppy plant. ›It is a downer drug that takes effect fastest with a rush if it is injected into the blood. ›Withdrawal can begin within 6-24 hours and include symptoms such as sweating, chills, muscle and bone aches, vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, anxiety and depression. Heroin

›A naturally occurring stimulant drug that is found in the leaves of the coca plant. ›Cocaine increases alertness, feelings of well-being, energy and motor activity. ›Anxiety, paranoia and restlessness are some frequent side effects. ›Dependence may result in physical damage, psychosis, depression and death. Cocaine