The 2008 report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration states that 20 million Americans, age 12 and older, use illegal drugs. This represents 8 percent of the population age 12 and older using drugs such as marijuana, hashish, cocaine, crack, hallucinogens, inhalants and prescription drugs. The effects of drug abuse can be far reaching for every age group.
Medical Effects
Medical effects of drug abuse vary with the drug being abused, but most of them have the potential to be lethal. Cocaine can cause seizures, tremors and heart attacks. Marijuana causes rapid heart rate and memory impairment. Narcotics such as heroin, barbiturates and tranquilizers can cause seizures, coma, respiratory compromise and heart failure. Rapid heart rate, high blood pressure, headache, blurred vision and psychosis can result from using amphetamines. Many of these drugs cause constipation, fertility problems, fuzzy thinking and an impaired immune system. Sudden death and stroke are not unusual in cocaine abusers.
Addiction
Using illegal drugs can create an uncontrollable craving for the drug, making it the most important thing in the life of the abuser. Addiction takes the place of family, friends and work. According to HelpGuide, addiction is more likely to occur in people who started using drugs at an early age, who have a history of childhood abuse, neglect or other trauma, a family history of addiction, or a personal history of depression or anxiety. Drug use alters the way the brain looks and functions. Drugs interfere with the ability to think clearly, use good judgment, and control behavior. These alterations in the brain contribute to the uncontrollable cravings of addiction.
High Risk Behaviors
According to AlcoholAlert there were almost 14,000 alcohol related fatalities in 2008. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in its HIV/AIDS Surveillance Report states that 6,600 newly diagnosed cases of HIV were IV drug abusers. Thirty-one percent of newly acquired HIV cases were transmitted via high risk sexual behavior. Having unprotected sex with known drug abusers contributes to HIV transmission. Women and men might prostitute themselves in order to serve their drug addiction. Sharing needles in order to inject cocaine, heroin, or methamphetamine, exposes the abuser to Hepatitis B and C, HIV infection and endocarditis or infection of the heart.
References
- Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration: Results from the 2008 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: National Findings
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill: Effects of Alcohol and Drug Abuse
- HelpGuide.org: Drug Abuse and Addiction: Signs, Symptoms and Help for Drug Problems
- AlcoholAlert.com: 2008 Drunk Driving Statistics
- Center for Disease Control and Prevention: HIV Surveillance Report
