The claim that the use of recreational drugs dangerously inhibits homeostasis is the topic
driving this study. Cocaine has been chosen as the drug studied for how a recreational drug
can impact homeostasis. The National Institute on Drug Abuse Cocaine Research Report
claims that the use of cocaine leads to serious health issues, such as addiction, heart
diseases, and a high chance of a chronic stroke. Cocaine’s prolonged usage leads to the
dopamine transporter, which helps to reabsorb dopamine, binding. When bound the
transporter stops dopamine from being reabsorbed into the bloodstream. Dopamine
eventually builds up in the nucleus accumbens, the neural interface in the basal forebrain,
which leads to the euphoric effects attributed to cocaine usage. Cocaine is a globally popular
drug with 21.46 million recorded users putting it near the top of commonly used
recreational drugs. With a variety of symptoms exhibited from cocaine usage a broad
research question of how cocaine affects thermoregulation in the body was developed.
Homoeostasis is exhibited in all living systems, originating from single cell organisms
homeostasis allows for self-correction and stability within an organism (NLOM, 2010).
Thermoregulation is a type of homeostasis that regulates and controls temperature, in
humans this allows the body to maintain an average temperature of 36.5-37.5 degrees.
Adenosine triphosphate production (ATP) is used to maintain body temperature when ATP is
created by the body 60 percent of the energy from its creation is used for thermoregulatory
reasons (Iastate, ).
Homoeostasis is a natural property of living systems that originates in single cells and enters
organisms, allowing them to self-correct and maintain stability (NLOM, 2010). A process
called thermoregulation is used to regulate the body’s temperature. This process maintains
the body's temperature even when the outside temperature is different. The core
temperature of the body is 36.5–37.5 degrees, and it is maintained through ATP production,
which is used to maintain body temperature (iastase,...). For this reason, a more detailed
research question was created: ‘What is the impact of cocaine on the thermoregulatory
system in humans? How does it alter body temperature regulation?
Cocaine binds to the dopamine transporter in the brain, which helps to reabsorb dopamine.
When bound to the transporter, cocaine, it stops dopamine from being absorbed again,
leading to a build-up in dopamine in the nucleus accumbens (the neural interface found in
the basal forebrain), resulting in the euphoric effects cocaine produces. The number of users
of cocaine is around 21.46 million people worldwide, making it one of the top-used
recreational drugs worldwide. Consequently, a broad research question, how does cocaine
affect thermoregulation in the body was developed.
The claim that is driving this study is how does the use of recreational drugs dangerously
inhibit homeostasis. The drug that has been chosen for this investigation is cocaine and how
it can dangerously inhibit an aspect of homeostasis. The National Institute on Drug Abuse
Cocaine Research Report claims that the misuse of cocaine leads to serious health risks, such
as addiction, Heat diseases, and a high chance of a chronic stroke.