DRUGS OF ABUSE
ECSTASY
Ecstasy is promoted as a drug which makes you happy and touchy-feely.
Supplied in tablet form. Ecstasy deaths average 2 a month in the
UK. It is known that Ecstasy damages serotonin receptors in the brain.
As serotonin principally regulates mood, permanent untreatable depression
is proving to be the end result in former regular users of this drug
CANNABIS
Cannabis or Marijuana is a mixture of dried leaves and flowers of the
hemp plant, usually smoked in a cigarette or bong. Cannabis deaths
average less than 1 a month in the UK. Carbon monoxide and tar absorption
can be up to five times greater than in cigarette smokers. Cannabis
contains delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol which is absorbed by nerve
cells, and causes users to feel a high. Cannabis has a public image
of being risk-free, in the short-term users experience; memory problems,
confusion, anxiety and panic attacks. Long-term usage produces changes
in the brain similar to those seen after long-term use of other major
drugs of abuse. Evidence shows a direct link between heavy cannabis
use, and long term mental health problems, particularly psychosis.
We regularly see patients who have been hospitalised due to cannabis
induced psychotic episodes
COCAINE
Known to be the biggest gamble of all drugs of abuse. Some can take
it once and never feel the desire to use it again, in others it proves
to be totally addictive immediately. Supplied in powder form for
sniffing, cooking into a solution for injecting, or smoking by heating
and inhaling the vapour (also as crack cocaine rocks). Cocaine deaths
average 7 a month in the UK - often by heart attack. Cocaine slows
down the absorption of dopamine in the brain, dopamine stays in the
brain longer than usual and makes the user feel euphoric and hyper-stimulated.
Frequent use causes paranoia and when snorted long-term the nasal
septum can rot away. Depression is a frequent problem for ex-users
ACID
An unpredictable drug. Acid or LSD is usually supplied on small absorbent
squares of paper with designs printed on, alternatively in tablet
form. Not considered to be an addictive drug. Acid causes the user
to feel heightened emotion (happiness, despair, terror), often changing
quickly from one to another. High doses cause hallucinations and
delusions which can continue for as long as 12 hours. Some users
experience flashbacks from a day to a year after using Acid, these
occur without warning. Evidence shows that Acid users often have
underlying mental health problems
HEROIN
Statistically, the drug most likely to kill you. Heroin is derived
from the seed pod of the Asian poppy. Supplied as a white or brown
powder which is heated and the vapour inhaled "chasing the dragon",
or cooked into a solution and injected. Heroin deaths average 63
a month in the UK, usually respiratory arrest caused by overdose.
Heroin causes users to feel euphoric, then extremely drowsy. Addiction
means the user requires more Heroin to achieve the same effect, and
withdrawal symptoms occur as early as a few hours after the previous
hit. Unclean Heroin contains impurities which when injected cause
damage to most internal organs and veins
Source: www.leedsstudentmedicalpractice.co.uk
NHS
Direct 0845 46 47 www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk
