Download Legal and Illegal Drugs - Haverford School District

Substance Abuse Notes Packet
Name _____________________________________
Period/Cycle _____________
Teens and Tobacco
Why do teens use tobacco?
Influence of friends: teens may feel pressure to be a part of the group.
Influence of family: teens see parents who are smokers and relate that behavior to
being an adult.
Influence of media: tactics are used by the media to glamorize tobacco use.
Legal tactics: advertisements on websites and in magazines, advertisements in
stores where cigarettes are sold, direct mail, and tobacco companies sponsor
events and offer discounts to keep prices low.
Illegal tactics: advertisements on the radio, TV, and billboards, cartoon images
that might attract children or teens
Tobacco Products
Tobacco products are made from the dried, processed leaves of tobacco plants.
Tobacco plants naturally produce a chemical that acts as an insecticide to protect the
plants’ leaves from insects. This insecticide is nicotine, a very addictive chemical
found in tobacco products.
Products that are smoked: cigarettes, clove cigarettes, cigars and pipes.
Smokeless Tobacco products: chewing tobacco (“dip or chew”) and snuff.
Tobacco users take in nicotine whenever they use cigarettes, cigars, pipes or
smokeless tobacco!
Chemicals in Tobacco Products
Nicotine is a stimulant drug. Stimulants increase activity in the nervous system. Once
nicotine is in the bloodstream, it reaches the brain within seconds. Nicotine affects your
breathing, movement, learning, memory, mood, and appetite. People who use tobacco
frequently begin to rely on this feeling from nicotine. This is what causes addiction.
There are over 4,000 chemicals in tobacco products. Some of them include: tar,
carcinogens, carbon monoxide, ammonia, propane, acetone, formaldehyde, stearic acid
(candle wax), cadmium (batteries), arsenic (weed killer) and naphthalene (mothballs).
Risks of Tobacco Use
Respiratory Diseases:
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) – a disease that results from gradual
loss of lung function.
Chronic Bronchitis – airways are constantly inflamed and mucus production is
increased, resulting in difficulty breathing.
Emphysema – a disorder in which alveoli in the lungs can no longer function properly.
Cardiovascular Disease: raises blood pressure, increase cholesterol, hardening and
thickening of the arteries (atherosclerosis), blood clots, which can all cause a heart
attack or stroke.
Cancers: lung cancer, oral cancer (leukoplakia), esophagus, larynx, stomach,
pancreas, kidney, bladder, blood cancer, as well as many other sites.
Secondhand smoke and smoking while pregnant can cause the same health
problems as smoking first hand.
Alcohol is a Drug
Facts about Alcohol
Alcohol is not always thought of as being a drug, but it is. A drug is a chemical
substance that is taken to cause changes in a person’s body or behaviors.
Alcohol is a powerful depressant. A depressant is: a drug that slows the brain and
body reactions. It can cause confusion, decreased alertness, poor coordination, blurred
vision, and drowsiness.
When people drink alcohol faster than the body can break it down into harmless
compounds, they become intoxicated. In some cases, they may even blackout.
Intoxication: is the state in which a person’s mental and physical abilities are impaired
by alcohol or another substance.
Blackout: a period of time that the drinker cannot recall.
Teens and Alcohol
Alcohol is illegal for teens and others under the age of 21. The attitudes of peers,
family, and the media strongly influence underage drinking.
Risks of underage drinking:
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Being injured or killed in a motor vehicle crash
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Committing or being the victim of sexual assault or other violence
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Long-term brain damage
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Problems with alcohol later in life
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Suspension from school, sports teams, or other school activities
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Legal issues, including heavy fines and loss of driver’s license
Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) – the amount of alcohol is a person’s blood,
expressed in a percentage. For example, a BAC of 0.1 percent means that one-tenth
of 1 percent of the fluid in the blood is alcohol.
Factors Affecting BAC
Rate of Consumption: a person’s liver chemically breaks down, or metabolizes,
alcohol at a fairly constant rate. The rate is one half to one ounce of alcohol per hour.
Therefore people who have a few drinks in one hour have a higher BAC than people
who drink the same amount over several hours.
Gender: Males will generally have a lower BAC than females. In males, a larger
amount of alcohol gets metabolized in the stomach before it enters the blood stream
and the liver is also more efficient in metabolizing alcohol.
Body Size: Smaller people (by weight and height), feel the effects of alcohol more than
larger people. They will have a higher BAC after a similar number of drinks.
Amount of Food in the Stomach: Drinking on an empty stomach increases the rate of
alcohol absorption into the bloodstream, resulting in a higher BAC.
Long Term Risks of Alcohol
Brain Damage – destroys nerve cells in the brain, which can impair memory and
concentration.
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome – a group of birth defects caused by the effects of alcohol on
an unborn child.
Liver Damage – interferes with the liver’s ability to break down fat (metabolize), heavy
drinking can cause the liver to fill with fat, causing cirrhosis which can lead to liver
failure.
Heart Disease – increased blood pressure and heart rate, irregular heartbeat, and a
buildup of fatty deposits in the heart muscle.
Digestive Problems – cancers of the mouth and stomach, recurring diarrhea, chronic
indigestion, heartburn or ulcers.
Alcoholism: a disease marked by a person being unable to control their use of alcohol
Physically, an alcoholic’s body requires alcohol to function. Psychologically, alcoholics
consider drinking a regular, essential part of coping with daily life.
The Stages of Alcoholism
Stage 1 – Problem Drinking: social drinkers who start to use alcohol to relieve stress
or escape from problems in their life.
Stage 2 – Absolute Dependence: the drinker becomes totally dependent on alcohol.
He or she can usually not stop after one drink, and feels a constant need to drink.
Stage 3 – Late Stage of Alcoholism: when alcoholics lose their mental, emotional,
and physical health. Their entire life revolves around drinking; they become isolated
from society and begin to experience serious health problems or may even die.
Treating Alcoholism
Acknowledging the Problem – the alcoholic must acknowledge the problem and ask for
help.
Detoxification – this process involves removing all alcohol from the person’s body. The
alcoholic will then suffer from withdrawal, which is symptoms that occur when a
dependent person stops taking a drug, such as, irritability, rapid heartbeat and
sweating.
Rehabilitation – the process of learning to cope with everyday living without alcohol.
Alcoholics will receive counseling to understand their disease and behavior.
Legal and Illegal Drugs
Proper Use
Over-the-counter (OTC) drugs – a medicine that is sold legally in pharmacies and
other stores without a doctor’s prescription.
Prescription drugs – a drug that can be obtained only with a written order from a
doctor and can only be purchased at a pharmacy.
By using the instructions on the label or following the doctor’s orders to treat a medical
condition, is the proper use of these drugs.
Drug Misuse: the improper use of medicines (prescription or OTC drugs). Examples
would be taking more than the prescribed amount or not taking a drug for the correct
period of time.
Drug Abuse: when a drug is intentionally use improperly or unsafely. Examples would
be abusing prescription pain killers or OTC cough medicines to cause a “high”, rather
than to treat pain or a cough.
Dangers of Drug Misuse and Abuse
Side effects – unwanted physical or mental effect cause by a drug.
Tolerance – drug use needs increasingly larger amounts of the drug to achieve the
original effect.
Dependence – the body develops a chemical need for the drug and can’t function
normally without it.
Withdrawal symptoms – nausea, vomiting, headaches, fever, paranoia, seizures, death
Risk Factors
A number of factors make it either more or less likely that a teen will abuse drugs. They
include family factors, social factors, and personal factors.
How does each of these factors influence teen drug abuse?
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How does each of these factors influence teens choosing not to abuse drugs?
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Commonly Abused Drugs
Depressants: slow body functions by decreasing heart and breathing rates and
lowering blood pressure.
Examples - Barbiturates, Sedatives, Painkillers, Tranquilizers, Opiates, Heroin,
Morphine, Codeine, Alcohol, GHB
Side effects – poor coordination, slurred speech, blurred vision, nausea,
vomiting, impaired judgment, memory problems, and drowsiness
Stimulants: increase heart rate, blood pressure, breathing rate and alertness.
Examples – Amphetamines, Speed, Methamphetamine, Cocaine, Crack
Cocaine, Ecstasy
Side effects – restlessness, rapid speech, increased respiration, convulsions,
stroke, loss of appetite, nausea
Hallucinogens: overload the brain with sensory information, causing a distorted sense
of reality.
Examples – LSD (“acid”), Psilocybin (“mushrooms”), PCP (“angel dust”),
Ketamine, Mescaline, Ecstasy
Side Effects – hallucinations, flashbacks, eliminated sensation of pain,
schizophrenia
Marijuana: is one of the most frequently abused psychoactive drugs. Its main
ingredient changes the way information reaches and is acted upon by the brain.
Side Effects – distorted perceptions, difficulties with thinking and problem solving,
loss of motor coordination, increased heart rate, anxiety, paranoia
Club Drugs: strength and quality of these drugs is unpredictable and their effects are
different from person to person and are very dangerous. Some people are unknowing
victims of these drugs; they are often referred to as “date-rape” drugs.
Examples – Ecstasy, Rohypnol, GHB, Ketamine
Inhalants: a breathable chemical vapor that produces mind-altering effects.
Examples – glue, household cleaners, nail polish remover, markers
Side Effects – increased heart rate, depressed brain function, cardiac arrest,
suffocation, loss of consciousness, death
Anabolic Steroids: synthetic drugs that are similar to the hormone testosterone.
Side Effects in Males – enlarged breasts, sterility
Side Effects in Females – facial hair growth, deepening of voice
Overall Side Effects – stunted growth, mood swings, hair loss, acne