Alcohol and other addictions

Alcohol

• The oldest and most widely used drug in the world.
• Use: Liquid that is drunk.
• Effects: Stimulant, gives a sense of relaxation and sense of sleepiness. High doses affect people's coordination. Slurred speech, confusion, depression, short-term memory loss, and slow reaction times are some of the commonly seen effects. Alcohol poisoning happens when a large volume of alcohol is consumed in short time.
• Addiction: Addiction is generally psychological dependence to feel relaxed, deal with stress, or just peer pressure. Physical addiction is also common and withdrawal can be painful or life threatening. Symptoms range from shaking, sweating, nausea, anxiety, and depression to hallucinations, fever, and convulsions.

Amphetamines

• Amphetamines are stimulants. They come in pills or tablets. Some prescription diet pills also fall into this category of drugs. Street names are speed, uppers, dexies, bennies.
• Use: Swallowed, inhaled, or injected.
• Effects & Dangers: Feels alert, and energized. Fast heart rate, higher breathing rate, and high blood pressure, and can cause sweating, tremors, headaches, sleeplessness, and blurred vision. Prolonged use may cause paranoia.
• Addiction: Psychologically addictive. Mood problems such as aggression and anxiety are common withdrawal symptoms.

Cocaine

• Cocaine is a white crystalline powder made from the dried leaves of the coca plant. Crack, is made from cocaine. It looks like white or tan pellets. Street names are cocaine: coke, snow, blow, nose candy, white. Crack: freebase, rock.
• Use: Cocaine is inhaled through the nose or injected. Crack is smoked.
• Effects: A stimulant that gives intense feeling of power and energy. Elevates heart rate, breathing rate, blood pressure, and body temperature. Sharing of needles can cause hepatitis or AIDS. First-time users can have heart attacks. Use of these drugs even one time can kill you.
• Addiction: These drugs are highly addictive. Even after one use, they can create both physical and psychological cravings that make it very, very difficult for users to stop.

Depressants

• Tranquilizers and barbiturates, calm nerves and relax muscles. Many are legally available by prescription. Street names are downers, goof balls, barbs, ludes.
• Use: Swallowed.
• Effects: When used at the correct dosage, depressants can help people feel calm and relaxed. Larger doses can cause lack of coordination, confusion, slurred speech, and tremors. Very large doses can cause arrest of breathing causing death. Depressants and alcohol should never be taken together - this combination increases the risk of overdose and death.
• Addiction: Both psychological and physical dependence.

Ecstasy (MDMA)

• This is a designer drug created by underground chemists. It comes in powder, tablet, or capsule form. Ecstasy is a popular club drug among teens. Street names are XTC, X, Adam, E, Roll.
• Use: Swallowed or snorted.
• Effects: Magnifies emotions, Increased heart rate. Cause dry mouth, cramps, blurred vision, chills, sweating, and nausea.
• Addiction: The physical addictiveness of Ecstasy is unknown. However, the psychological dependence is dangerous.

Heroin

• Made from the dried milk of the opium poppy, which is also used to create the class of painkillers called narcotics. Heroin can range from a white to dark brown powder to a sticky, tar-like substance. Street names are horse, smack, Big H, junk.
• Use: Heroin is injected, smoked, or inhaled (if it is pure).
• Effects: Burst of euphoric (high) feelings. This high is often followed by drowsiness, nausea, stomach cramps, and vomiting. With long-term use is associated with chronic constipation, dry skin, scarred veins, and breathing problems. Users who inject heroin often have collapsed veins and put themselves at risk of getting deadly infections such as HIV or Hepatitis, and bacterial endocarditis (inflammation of the lining of the heart) if they share needles.
• Addiction: Extremely addictive and easy to overdose on (which can cause death). Intense withdrawal symptoms including insomnia, vomiting, and muscle pain.

Inhalants

• These include household products like glues, paint thinners, dry cleaning fluids, gasoline, felt-tip marker fluid, correction fluid, hair spray, aerosol deodorants, and spray paint.
• Use: Inhalants are breathed in directly.
• Effects: Feel giddy and confused, as if you were drunk. Long-time users get headaches, nosebleeds, loss of hearing and sense of smell. Inhalants are the most likely of abused substances to cause severe toxic reaction and death.
• Addiction: Dependent upon them to feel good, deal with life, or handle stress.

LSD

• LSD (Lysergic Acid Diethylamide) is a lab-brewed hallucinogen and mood-changing chemical. LSD is odorless, colorless, and tasteless. Street names are acid, blotter, doses, microdots.
• Use: LSD is licked or sucked off small blotting paper. Capsules and liquid forms are swallowed.
• Effects: Hallucinations are common but kind of hallucination is unpredictable and and depends on the dosage taken and the user. Sometimes, panic attacks, confusion, depression, and frightening delusions. Sleeplessness, mangled speech, convulsions, increased heart rate, and coma are common.

Addictiveness: Teens who use it can become psychologically dependent upon it to feel good, deal with life, or handle stress.

Marijuana

• It resembles green, brown, or gray dried parsley with stems or seeds. A stronger form of marijuana called hashish (hash) looks like brown or black cakes or balls. Street names are pot, weed, blunts, chronic, grass, reefer, herb, ganja.
• Use: Marijuana is typically smoked. Some people mix it into foods or brew it as a tea.
• Effects: Affect mood and coordination. Users may experience mood swings. Elevates heart rate and blood pressure. Some people get red eyes. Hallucinations are common. Effects lungs as cigarettes - steady smokers suffer coughs, wheezing, and frequent colds.
• Addictiveness: Teens who use marijuana can become psychologically dependent upon it to feel good, deal with life, or handle stress. In addition, their bodies may demand more and more marijuana to achieve the same kind of high experienced in the beginning.

Nicotine

• Nicotine is a highly addictive stimulant found in tobacco. This drug is quickly absorbed into the bloodstream when smoked.
• Use: Nicotine is typically smoked. Some people put a pinch of tobacco (called chewing or smokeless tobacco) into their mouths and absorb nicotine through mouth.
• Effects: Rapid heartbeat, increased blood pressure, shortness of breath. Increases risk for lung and heart disease and stroke. Smokers also have bad breath and yellowed teeth. Chewing tobacco causes cancers of the mouth and neck. Withdrawal symptoms include anxiety, anger, restlessness, and insomnia.
• Addictiveness: Nicotine is as addictive as heroin or cocaine. It is extremely difficult to quit. Those who start smoking during adolescence have the hardest time breaking the habit.

Compiled by: Indrajit Sinha; Last updated: 08.11.07 © Medhospital Foundation

There is no generalization possible in medicine. The pages included in this website are purely educational and have been presented for information purpose only. Each section has been prepared with utmost care but should not be used as a substitute for your own physician's advice and care. Please see conditions for use.