Drugs and Our Society
Stimulants
Cocaine / Amphetamines / Caffeine /
Nicotine
Part 7
Stimulants
1.
2.
During times of fatigue and lethargy
- people at times look for substances to
elevate their mood
- to make them energetic
- and stimulates provide these effects
They modify a person’s activity level / mood /
and central nervous system
- cocaine and methamphetamine are illegal
- other amphetamines require a prescription
- still others, caffeine and nicotine, are the
most widely used drugs in the world
Stimulants, cont
3.
4.
They impact the CNS
- speeding up mental and physical processes
in the body
- this is why they are called “uppers”
Cocaine in 2006
- there are over 3 million occasional users in
the United States
- occasional users are no more than 12 times
in a year
- 4 million hardcore use at least once a week
Cocaine, cont
5.
6.
Cocaine comes from the leaves of the coca
plant
- specifically, the erythroxylon coca
- cocaine is one of 18 alkaloids coming from
the plant
Natives of the Andes mountains chewed coca
leaves to relieve fatigue
- it was also used for spiritual reasons and for
well-being
- many plantation owners paid their workers
with coca leaves
Cocaine, cont
7.
8.
Chewing coca leaves does not seem to cause
independence
- leaves contain less than 2% cocaine
- chewed or brewed in tea does not cause
biological harm or social dysfunction
There are over 200 types of coca plants, but
only 3 types of coca leaves are used in the
production of cocaine
- Huanuco coca: Bolivia and Peru
- Amazonian coca: Amazon River region
- Colombian coca: Columbia
Cocaine, cont
9.
10.
According to the US Department of State, the
production levels of cocaine are:
- Columbia: 521,400 metric tons
(1,042,800,000 lbs)
- Peru: 69,200 metric tons (138,400,000 lbs.)
- Bolivia: 22,800 metric tons (45,600,000 lbs.)
The cocaine trade is run by drug cartels
- they maintain their own small armies
- using force and fear to protect their empires
Properties of cocaine
1.
2.
3.
It is an odorless, crystalline, white powder
- producing intense euphoria / alertness /
and energy
- it also inhibits appetite and sleep
It works on that portion of the brain that
controls pleasure and reinforcement
- it is directly related to the effect of
dopamine
Methods of intake:
snorted / smoked / and injected
Cocaine, cont
4.
5.
Snorted cocaine
- effects in about 3 minutes
- peaks after 15 to 20 minutes
- wears off in 60 to 90 minutes
Injected cocaine
- effects within seconds (8 to 10)
- almost instantaneous
- peaking in 3 to 5 minutes
- wears off in 30 to 40 minutes
Crack cocaine
1.
2.
Crack emerged in the 1980s, but was first
reported in the late 1970s
- it is a product of mixing cocaine with baking
powder and water
- it is then heated
- this is referred to as freebase (2 methods)
This process produces small chunks or rocks
- these can be smoked
- which is the usual method
- but it can also be injected
Crack cocaine, cont
3.
4.
The euphoria from crack is brief
- it lasts about 10 to 20 minutes
- the desire to repeat usage is high
- but most people who have used crack do
not continue to use it
Crack has been related to violence
- but that is primarily due to the drug trade
- 300 gang members in San Francisco who do
not use the drug, but use violence to control
the selling of crack
Cocaine Paraphernalia
1.
2.
What police officers look for
- dealers: mirrors / razor blades / scales used
to weigh drug / pagers / cell phones
- users: mirror / coke spoon / fancy straws /
odd assortment of containers / white
powder on the nose / crack pipe
Thinking Critically
“Cocaine use can be reduced by reducing the
amount of cocaine entering the country or by
reducing the demand for the drug. Do you
favor more enforcement or persuading people
not to take drugs?”
Popularity of cocaine
1.
2.
Entertainment and the media
- glorifies drug use
- people who deal have the money and power
- news stories talk of the failure of the police
Music
- 1930’s/1940’s: Cole Porter’s “I Get a Kick
Out of you”
- “I get no kick from cocaine, I’m sure that if I
took even one sniff, it would bore me terrifically too, but I still get a kick out of you”
Popularity, cont
3.
4.
1960’s the reference to drugs in music were
increasing
- Grateful Dead: “Casey Jones”/“Let It Bleed”
- Rolling Stones: “Sister Morphine”
- Eric Clapton: “Cocaine”
Literature
- references to cocaine are found in fiction
and non-fiction novels
- “Snowblind”: John Belushi’s life story
- even found in comic books read by children
Physical and psychological effects
of cocaine
1.
Research to date has not found a “cocaine
personality”
- not all cocaine users experience dependence
and/or withdrawal
- but they do build up a tolerance to effects
of the drug
- withdrawal symptoms are not like narcotic
withdrawal
- it does include depression / lack of energy /
poor appetite / less pleasure from activities
/ restlessness / agitation
Physical / psychological effects,
cont
2.
3 phases follow abstinence of chronic users
- intense craving: agitation / anorexia /
deep depression (this “crash” can last from
9 hours up to 4 days)
- withdrawal: incapable of feeling normal
pleasure /moderate depression / sleeplessness can last up to 10 weeks (usually stabilizes after 7 to 10 days)
- Extinction: improvement is considerable /
periods of depression (occasional cravings
can last for months or even years)
Death from cocaine
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Can cause irregular heartbeat / high blood
pressure / chest pains / and can trigger heart
attacks
It is capable of destroying the heart muscle
- by disrupting the blood supply
Coronary artery disease is relatively common
in cocaine users
Uncontrolled seizures / strokes / paralysis of
the breathing muscles can also occur
Lethal doses of cocaine have not yet been
determined
Death, cont
6.
- some people die from relatively low levels
- or by mixing their drugs (polydrug)
Dawn (Drug Abuse Warning Network)
- almost 5000 people die yearly from cocaine
use
- mostly males over the age of 35