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Chapter 23

Medicines and Drugs

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Lesson 1

The Role of Medicines

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Classifications of Medicines• Medicines

– Drugs that are used to treat or prevent disease or other conditions

• Drugs– Substances other than food that change the structure

or function of the body or mind• Medicines can be sorted into four broad

categories– Help prevent disease– Fight pathogens, or infectious agents that cause

disease– Relieve pain– Help maintain or restore health and regulate the

body’s system

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Medicines that Prevent Disease

• Vaccines– A preparation introduced into the body to

stimulate an immune response– Contain weakened or dead pathogens that

stimulate your body to produce specific antibodies against those pathogens

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Medicines that Relieve Pain

• Analgesics or pain relievers• Range from mild (aspirin) to strong

narcotics (opium based, morphine and codeine)

• Aspirin = acetylsalicylic acid, is used to relieve pain, reduce fever, and to treat arthritis – Aspirin can be dangerous to children

• Ibuprofen = acetaminophen

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Medicines and the Body• Every person is different

• Side Effects – reactions to medicine other than the one intended– Additive Interaction

• Medicines work together in a positive way

– Synergistic Effect• Two or more medicines work to a greater effect

than when they are taken separately

– Antagonist Interaction• When one medicine is canceled or reduced when

taken with another medicine

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Other Problems

• Tolerance– Condition in which the person becomes used

to the effect of medicine

• Withdrawal– Occurs when a person stops using a medicine– Especially true when someone forms a

dependency on the medicine

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Medicine Safety

• Laws and policies for testing and approving new medicines

• Prescription Medicines– Written approval

• Over-the-Counter Medicines– Can buy without a prescription

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Lesson 2

Drug Use – A High-Risk Behavior

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What is Substance Abuse?• Substance abuse – any unnecessary or

improper chemical substances for nonmedical purposes– Overuse, multiple use of a drug, use of an illegal drug,

and use of a drug in combination with alcohol or other drugs.

• Illegal drugs – chemical substances that people of any age may not lawfully manufacture, possess, buy or sell.

• Illicit drug use – the use or sale of any substance that is illegal or otherwise not permitted

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Factors That Influence Decisions About Drugs

• Peer Pressure

• Family Members

• Role Models

• Media Messages

• Perceptions

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The Health Risks of Drug Use• Physical health

– Harm a user’s brain, heart, lungs and other vital organs– Overdose: a strong, sometimes fatal reaction to taking a

large amount of a drug• Mental health

– Cloud reasoning and thinking, users lose control of their behavior

– Ecstasy alters the brain’s structure and function• Speeds up the nervous system, controls thinking mood,

memory, and perception

• Social health– “just experimenting” can say or do things that will regret

later– Negative effect on relationships with friends and family– Expelled from school, often has legal consequences

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Understanding the Addiction Cycle

• Tolerance – needs more to feel the effect

• Psychological dependence – person believes that a drug is needed in order to feel good or to function normally

• Physiological dependence – a user has a chemical need for the drug

• Addiction – physiological or psychological dependence on a drug

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Lesson 3

Marijuana, Inhalants and Steroids

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Marijuana

• A plant whose leaves, buds and flowers are smoked for their intoxicating effects

• One of the most widely used illegal drugs• Also known as pot, weed, or grass• Often the first drug teens experiment with• All forms are mind altering and can

damage the user’s health• When combined with other drugs it can be

deadly

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Marijuana and Addiction

• Raises levels of brain chemical called dopamine• Dopamine: produces a pleasurable feeling• Letdown or “crash” is when the pleasure

sensation stops• Contains more cancer-causing chemicals than

tobacco smoke and carries the same health risks as smoking tobacco

• Interferes with the immune system, user becomes more susceptible to infections

• Figure 23.3 (use for Pamphlet)

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Risks to Mental/Emotional Health

• Experience slow mental reflexes and suffer sudden feelings of anxiety and paranoia

• Paranoia: an irrational suspiciousness or distrust of others

• Dizzy, trouble walking, difficulty remembering• Short-term memory is adversely affected • Distorted perception, loss of coordination,

trouble with thinking and problem solving

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Risks to Growth and Development

• Risks to the Reproductive Organs– Males: regular use interferes with sperm

production and lowers levels of testosterone, the hormone responsible for the development of adult male characteristics

– Females: increases testosterone levels, unwanted facial hair, lead to infertility

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Risks and Consequences of Driving Under the Influence

• Interferes with depth perception, impairs judgment, and slows reflexes

• Penalties and legal consequences for driving while under the influence of marijuana are strict– Suspension of a driver’s license, a fine, and

often jail time– Insurance will increase when license is

restored

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Inhalants

• Substances whose fumes are sniffed and inhaled to achieve a mind-altering effect

• Most go immediately to the brain, causing damage and actually killing brain cells that will never be replaced.

• Include– Solvents and aerosols such as glues, spray paints,

gasoline and varnishes• All inhalants are extremely dangerous and many

are labeled as poisons• Cause permanent nervous system and brain

damage

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Inhalants cont.,

• Most inhalants depress the central nervous system and produce effects that include a glassy stare, slurred speech and impaired judgment

• Can cause sudden death by increasing heart rate that results in cardiac arrest or death by suffocation

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Anabolic-Androgenic Steroids

• Synthetic substances that are similar to the male sex hormone testosterone

• Anabolic refers to muscle building • Androgenic refers to increased male

characteristics • When using under a doctors guidance , they

help build muscle in patients with chronic diseases, all other use is illegal and dangerous

• Can cause mood swings, impaired judgment resulting from feelings of invincibility, and paranoia

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Lesson 4

Psychoactive Drugs

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Classification of Psychoactive Drugs

• Chemicals that affect the central nervous system and alter activity in the brain

• Change the functioning of the CNS• There are four main groups (Figure 23.4,

pamphlet)– 1. Stimulants – 2. Depressants– 3. Narcotics– 4. Hallucinogens

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Health Risks of Stimulants

• Stimulants are drugs that speed up the central nervous system

• Foods that contain a small amount of a stimulant called caffeine are coffee, cola and tea

• Nicotine in tobacco products is also a stimulant• Some are used for medication to treat

hyperactivity• Most dangerous of the illegal stimulants is

cocaine, amphetamine and methamphetamine

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Cocaine• Rapid-acting, powerful, highly addictive • Interrupts normal functioning of the central

nervous system• Illegal everywhere• White powder extracted from the leaves of the

coca plant• Experience a surge of self-confidence and

euphoria, a feeling of intense well-being or elation

• Regular use can lead to depression, fatigue, paranoia, and physiological dependence

• Overuse can lead to cardiac arrest, respiratory failure, seizures and death

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Crack

• More dangerous form of cocaine• AKA crack cocaine, rock or freebase rock• One of the most deadly drugs available • Pure form of cocaine that reaches the brain

seconds after being smoked or injected• Causes heart rate and blood pressure to soar to

dangerous levels • Death may result from cardiac or respiratory

failure• Mixing with alcohol can cause death due to liver

failure

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Amphetamines

• Used in prescription medicines to reduce fatigue and drowsiness or to suppress the appetite

• Used illegally to stay awake, alert, to improve athletic performance, or to lose weight

• Easily develop a tolerance and therefore user can ingest more of the substance

• Twitching, irregular heartbeat, paranoia and heart and blood vessel damage

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Methamphetamine

• AKA, Meth• White, odorless powder that easily dissolves in

alcohol or water• “Club Drug” • Short term feeling of euphoria

– Feeling of intense well-being or elation

• Results in depression, paranoia, damage to CNS, increased heart rate and blood pressure, and damage to brain cells

• Also causes death

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Health Risks of Depressants

• Sedatives• Drugs that tend to slow down the central

nervous system• Relax muscles, relieve feelings of tension and

worry and cause drowsiness• Dangerous because they slow the heart rate,

lower blood pressure, and interrupt the normal rate of breathing

• Most common: alcohol, also includes, barbiturate and tranquilizers, rohypnol and GHB

• Cause a synergistic effect

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Barbiturates

• Sedative-hypnotic drug• Drugs that induce sleepiness• Mood changes, sleeping more than normal

and coma• Rarely used for medical reasons• Used illegally to produce a feeling of

intoxication and to counteract the effects of stimulants

• Combining with alcohol can be fatal

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Tranquilizers

• Depressants that reduce muscular activity, coordination, and attention span

• Relieve anxiety, muscle spasms, sleeplessness, and nervousness

• Overuse can lead to physiological and psychological dependance

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Rohypnol

• Club Drug

• Date rape drug

• Tablet form and looks like ordinary aspirin

• Dissolves in carbonated beverages

• The victim will wake up much later with no recollection of what may have happened

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GHB

• Gammahydroxy Butyric Acid

• Has been used in date rape crimes

• Clear liquid, a white powder, variety of tablets and capsules

• Leaves the blood relatively quickly making it hard to tell if there is an overdose

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Narcotics

• Specific drugs derived from the opium plant that are obtainable only by prescription and are used to relieve pain

• Morphine, OxyContin, and Codeine• Morphine and codeine relieve pain by blocking

pain messengers in the brain• Cause euphoria, drowsiness, constipation,

pinpoint pupils, slow and shallow breathing, convulsions, coma and death

• Very addictive, pharmacists are required to keep records of all sales

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Heroin• Highly addictive narcotic

• Processed form of morphine that is injected, snorted or smoked

• Depresses the CNS and slows breathing and pulse rate

• Can cause infection of the heart lining and valves, as well as liver disease

• Easily develop tolerance• http://www.drugabuse.gov/infofacts/heroin.html• http://www.justice.gov/ndic/pubs3/3843/index.htm

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Hallucinogens• Drugs that alter moods, thoughts, and sense

perceptions including vision, hearing, smell and touch

• No medical use• PCP, LSD, Ketamine, and Ecstasy• Overload the sensory controls in the brain• Brain confuses and intensifies sensations and

hallucinates• Impair judgment and reasoning• Increase heart and respiratory rates• Effects are extremely unpredictable • Last for several hours or several days

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PCP• Most dangerous of all drugs• Effects vary greatly from user to user• Distorted sense of time and space, increase

muscle strength and inability to feel pain• Overdose can cause death• Most PCP-related deaths are caused by the

destructive behaviors • Flashbacks can occur at any time causing panic,

confusion and lack of control

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LSD• Strong hallucinogen• Severe distorted perceptions of sound and color• Higher doses increase the risk of convulsions,

coma, heart and lung failure and even death• Affects brain emotional center and distorts reality• Range of emotions = euphoria to deep

depression• Frightening range of emotions long after actual

use of the drug

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Ketamine• Used for medical purposes, mostly in treating

animals• Misused as a club drug• White powder to be snorted or injected• Also smoked with marijuana or tobacco• Causes hallucinations and dreamlike states• Result in death due to respiratory failure• Also known as Special K, Vitamin K, Kit Kat, Cat

Valium, and Purple• Legal to use on animals• Many of the same effects as PCP• Most teens choose to experiment with it because

the effects typically last only an hour

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Ecstasy and Other Dangerous Drugs

• Designer Drugs– synthetic substances meant to imitate the effects of

hallucinogens and other dangerous drugs• Can be several hundreds times stronger than

the drugs they are meant to imitate• Ecstasy may give a short-term feeling of

euphoria • Often causes confusion, depression, paranoia,

psychosis, and even long-term damage to brain cells

• Also result in uncontrollable tremors, paralysis, and irreversible brain damage

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Lesson 5

Living Drug Free

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Commitment to Be Drug Free• Make a firm and deliberate decision• Be fully committed to refusing them• Steer clear of people who do use drugs

and places where drugs may be used• Being drug free means being able to enjoy

life and deal with challenges and problems in healthful ways

• Shows the strength of your values and demonstrates good character and respect for yourself and others

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Efforts to Curb Drug Abuse

• School Efforts– Drug-free school zones: areas within 1,000 feet of schools and

designated signs, within which people caught selling drugs receive especially severe penalties

– Drug education classes– Zero tolerance policies– Expulsion of students who are caught using

• Community Efforts– Drug watches: organized community efforts by neighborhood

residents to patrol, monitor, report and otherwise try to stop drug deals and drug abuse

• Choosing Healthy Alternatives

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Becoming Drug Free

• Never too late

• Admitting that there is a problem

• Getting help

• Overcoming the problem

• Individual counseling, support groups, or drug treatment centers

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Warning Signs of Drug Use • Gets drunk or high regularly, is often hung-over• Lies about the drugs he or she is using or constantly talk about

drugs• Stops participating in activities that once were an important part of

his or her life• Changes eating or sleeping habits, shows rapid weight loss• Has difficulty concentrating• Takes unnecessary risks or participates in unsafe behaviors• Gets in trouble with authorities, such as school administrators or

police• Seems withdrawn, depressed, tired, and cares less about personal

grooming and appearance• Has red-rimmed eyes and runny nose not related to cold or allergies• Has “blackouts” and forgets what he or she did while under the

influence

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Getting Help

• Drug abuse is a treatable condition• Support groups, counseling services and

treatment centers• For teens the first step to getting help is to

talk to a parent, teacher, school counselor, health care provider or another trusted adult

• Toll free hotlines or drug treatment center

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Treatment Centers• Outpatient Drug-Free Treatment

– Programs usually do not include medications and often consist of individual or group counseling

• Short-Term Treatment– Centers can include residential, medication, and

outpatient therapies

• Maintenance Therapy– Intended for heroin addicts, this treatment usually

includes medication therapy

• Therapeutic Communities– Residencies for people with a long history of drug

abuse, highly structured programs that usually last from 6 to 12 months