




Facts
Approximately 14 million Americans — about 7.4 percent of the adult population — meet the diagnostic criteria for alcohol abuse or alcoholism. Rohypnol is the brand name for flunitrazepam, and it is also a central nervous sytem depressant. It is in the same drug family as Valium, Halcyon, and Xanax, but is ten times as strong. Rohypnol is produced by Hoffman-LaRoche, Inc. in both Europe and Latin America as a sleep aid, but it is illegal in the United States. Heroin is a white powder that is readily soluble in water. The introduction of just two esters onto the morphine molecule changes the physical properties of the substance such that there is a signifi-cant increase in solubility, permitting solutions with increased drug concentrations. A more subtle advantage of heroin is its greater potency compared to morphine. The volume of drug injected may be particularly important when high doses are used. Thus, 1 gram of heroin will produce the effects of 2 to 3 grams of morphine; by converting morphine to heroin, producers increase both the potency and the value of the drug. Following injection, heroin is very potent, with the ability to cross the blood-brain barrier and enter the brain. This barrier results from a unique arrangement of cells around blood vessels within the brain, which limits the free movement of compounds. Many factors contribute to the barrier—in general, the less polar a drug, the more rapidly it enters the brain. Heroin, however, has a very short half-life in the blood (amount of time that half the drug remains). It is rapidly degraded by esterases, the enzymes that break ester bonds. The acetyl group at the 3-position of the molecule is far more sensitive to these enzymes than the acetyl group at the 6-position. Indeed, the 3-acetyl group is attacked almost immediately after injection and, within several minutes, virtually all the heroin is converted to a metabolite, 6-acetylmorphine. The remaining acetyl group at the 6-position is also lost, but at a slower rate. Loss of both acetyl groups generates morphine. It is believed that a combination of 6-acetylmorphine and morphine is responsible for the actions of heroin. Among 19–22 year olds, the percentage of youths reporting that most or all of their friends used benzodiazepine increased, from 1.9% in 1980 to 2.1% in 2000. There was also an increase of 0.9% in the number of 19 to 22 year olds who reported that most or all of their friends used benzodiazepines from 1999 to 2000. The percentage of young adults aged 19–22 years who reported that they had any exposure to benzodiazepines also increased from 14.3% in 1999 to 18.5% in 2000, an increase of 4.3%. This was decreased, however, from responses in 1980, when a full 29.6% of young adults in this age group reported having any exposure to benzodiazepines. In those saying they were often exposed to benzodiazepine use, the percentage again increased, from 1.5% in 1999 to 1.7% in 2000, an increase of 0.2%. Lifetime use of benzodiazepines has decreased slighty over the years, but this reduction has been minimal. According to the results from an annual survey done by SAMSHA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, of the United States Department of Health), use of tranquilizers or benzodiazepines has decreased. Data from SAMSHA's 2000 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse shows that in persons aged 18–25, lifetime use of tranquilizers decreased from7.9% in 1999 to 7.4% in 2000. Past year usage of tranquilizers in this age group also decreased, from 3.1% in 1999, to 3.0% in 2000. Finally, past month usage of tranquilizers in the 18 to 25-year-old respondents to the survey decreased, from 1.1% in 1999, to 1.0% in 2000. |
Drug Addiction
Drug addiction is a pattern of repeated drug taking that usually results in tolerance (the need for greater amounts of the drug to achieve the same effect), withdrawal (physical and cognitive effects when drug use declines or stops), and compulsive drug taking behavior (drug taking that persists despite efforts to reduce intake and despite problems with family, friends, and work). Drug addiction encompasses a diverse range of drugs (such as alcohol, cannabis, amphetamines, and cocaine) and is caused by many different factors.
Drug Side Effects
Drug addiction and abuse comes with a heavy price. There are drastic drug side effects associated with drug misuse and abuse. Drug side effects from legal and illegal drugs can range from mild itching to comas and death. In addition to the physical drug side effects mentioned, there are many psychological drug side effects of drug abuse; the most serious being drug addiction and overdose.
Withdrawal
Withdrawal is what happens when a person who is addicted to drugs or alcohol discontinues use. There are numerous symptoms that take place both physically and emotionally when an addicted individual stops using. Withdrawal can last a few days to a few weeks and may include nausea or vomiting, sweating, shakiness, and anxiety. Keep in mind; this only occurs if a person has regular, heavy use of a drug or alcohol. Withdrawal can be extremely uncomfortable without professional help. Treatment for withdrawal from alcohol or drugs may require a medical professional to be present. Drug and alcohol rehabilitation is often the best way to overcome withdrawal and its symptoms as well as recovery from drug addiction.
Intervention
An intervention is when a group of loved ones and/or a trained intervention counselor meets with the person in need of help for the purpose of breaking down their denial and motivating them to immediately seek drug addiction treatment. Often, individuals in the midst of drug addiction engage in a variety of self destructive behaviors. Although baffling to friends and family members such people generally either aren't aware on a conscious level that they have a drug addiction problem, or even when they know they have a problem they may cling to the false belief that the problem will somehow go away without any outside help. When an intervention is held a moment of clarity is created
for the addict. Most people struggling with the problem of drug or alcohol
addiction will accept help the very day of the intervention.
Drug Abuse
Drug abuse is defined as the chronic or habitual use of any chemical substance to alter states of body or mind for other than medically warranted purposes. Drug abuse is a problem which has an effect on people of all income levels,
ages, and stations in life. Quite often the last person to see that there is a
problem is the drug abuser them self. Every year, more and more people become
drug addicts in their pursuit to get "high".
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