Post: My research paper on drugs
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06-27-2011, 07:01 PM
#1
getxscared
Space Ninja
Its mainly about drugs and teenagers and how they have developed. Enjoy!Generations of the Drug Sensation
From the 1970s to today, the world of recreational drugs has changed in many ways, but not completely. In the past, drugs like LSD and crack-cocaine were the “big thing;” now, the usage of drugs is turning towards prescription drugs like Vicodin and Xanax. Prescription drugs are more dangerous for many reasons; foremost, because of their availability. Naturally, high availability most definitely will cause a high rate of usage, resulting in many people abusing prescription drugs. There are many programs that focus on drug education and prevention, but some would argue that these programs do not work, because of such easy accessability. Therefore, teenage drug use is a more serious issue today than it was in the seventies and eighties due to the increase in availability, especially regarding prescription drugs.
Drug use among teenagers and people in general has been changing as time goes on. In the 1970s, drugs were becoming very popular without people knowing the whole truth about them (Robison). LSD was very popular in this time period, and was somewhat popular among teenagers, and has reached its top usage rate of thirty percent. Fortunately, today, that rate has dropped to just below ten percent, and LSD has been proven to be non-addictive (Teen). During the 1980s, the use of crack-cocaine beat alcohol by eight percent in a poll asking which substance is the most serious problem today. Crack was used so often because it was very cheap, very available, and also caused many people to become addicted. These two drugs were the drugs on the rise throughout the 1970s and the 1980s, but since then, the usage rate among teens and young adults has dropped significantly (Robison).
In the current generation, it is easy to see the change in popularity, and the usage rates of drugs among teenagers. While the use of tobacco, methamphetamines, cocaine, alcohol, and LSD has dropped, marijuana is still being used by about the same amount of high school kids as it has been five years ago, and the abuse of prescription drugs is on the rise. Sixty percent of teenage drug users use marijuana and marijuana only. This is the highest percentage of drug abuse for teenagers today, and is obviously a serious problem (Anderson). Another serious issue is that the rate of teens abusing prescription drugs is on the rise. Being abused by over twenty percent of the American population, prescription drugs are the most widely abused drug in the United States. Prescription drug abuse is the use of medicinal drugs for non-therapeutic or recreational reasons, selling one’s prescription to people who do not have one, and taking more of the medicine than what is prescribed. A study shows that painkillers such as Vicodin and OxyContin have been abused by twenty percent of teenagers in America (Prescription). The rate of prescription drug abuse among teenagers has been, and still is, increasing at an alarming rate.
Today, although many of the original drugs have decreased in use among teenagers, there are many other issues that can add to the current problem. For example, there are many misconceptions about the drugs, their effects, and the type of people who use them. A specific example illustrates this on January 14, 2005; a law-school student in California had taken OxyContin and drank alcohol later, causing his death. His mother said that she had no idea this would happen because her son was a promising student and had no history of drug use. Today though, more people are starting to realize that prescription drugs are being used for other reasons than just to get high. Seventy-nine percent of the people who had abused a painkiller said they had done so to relieve pain, and about eleven percent said that the drugs were taken to get high. Other reasons for the use of prescription drugs were because they were cheaper for parties than alcohol were, and drugs like Ritalin were taken to stay awake during the night to keep up with schoolwork (Prescription). Many parents who think that their children are not at risk of drug abuse may be in for a surprise in the future.
Many factors are contributing to the steady use of drugs among teenagers and young adults of this generation. The average age for the first alcohol use is 12 years old, and the average age for the first marijuana use is 13 years old (Anderson). This early introduction to illicit drugs causes many people to accept the recreational use of drugs and alcohol and increases social acceptance. Increased availability is also another factor adding to the abuse of drugs. When more of the drug is available to people, the purchase and use of it will be more casual, and not seen as a problem to the people in the environment. Many people who abuse prescription drugs obtain the drugs by asking a person who is given the drug by a pharmacist. In fact, 1 in 4 young adults given the prescription were asked to share their pills, while 1 in 5 had said they had sold or traded away medicine at some point (Prescription). This also shows the influence that pressure has on young adults to use the drugs socially, or for a reason other than the intended purpose. The influences that are pressed on the young group of today’s generation are keeping drug use from declining, and causing it to increase in some areas.
Along with the drugs that have been here a long time like cocaine, marijuana, LSD, and medicinal drugs, there are new types of drugs being invented and used to get high. Because these drugs are new to the street, there have been very few or even no laws passed to ban the use of these new drugs. A new drug, Salvia, or Salvia Divinorum, has come to the market around 2008. Salvia is used in Mexico for medicinal purposes; though now, the drug is used recreationally and in much higher concentrations than originally used. Salvia is a potent drug when a somewhat large amount is ingested, and its effects are compared to that of LSD. The spread of Salvia was mainly caused when an outbreak of YouTube videos of people using the drug and showing its effects spread across the internet. Over 3,500 videos of young adults experimenting with the drug were posted on YouTube, causing the awareness and the popularity of the drug to steadily rise, and because of the spread on the internet, the drug is widely known by teens and young adults, whilst the parents have little to no knowledge of salvia. As of now, the possession of the plant is banned in only eight states throughout America, and most of the others have only considered banning the substance. Another new, and very dangerous drug, is ‘Bath Salts’. It is a highly addictive and potent drug and is not being used widely yet, but the fact that they are legal in most states and are a cheap high cause news of them to spread through the youth of America. Bath Salts have effects that can be compared to methamphetamines, but they are known to cause severe psychotic episodes. The drug is appealing to young adults and teenagers because it can be sold in convenient stores and gas stations for low prices, but the danger is not realized (Anderson). Many new drugs are being made and put on the market each year, but just because it is legal does not mean that it is not dangerous.
Although the problem with marijuana has not decreased in the last five years, prescription drug abuse is considered to be the real problem today. The reason this is believed to be true is because many teenagers and young adults take the drugs for reasons other than to get high, unlike marijuana where most people use the drug recreationally. The main reasons that people misuse prescription drugs are to feel relaxed, to get high, to stay awake, to concentrate, or to lose weight. There are three main categories of pills that are prescribed to patients by doctors; stimulants, depressants, and pain killers. Stimulants like Ritalin and Adderrall increase the user’s awareness, energy, and cause them to stay awake for long hours. A common stimulant that is widely known is caffeine. Depressants act like the opposite of a stimulant. They manipulate chemicals in the body that, in turn, slow down brain activity and cause the user to be sleepy or tired. Valium and Xanax are the common depressants prescribed to patients, and alcohol is a common depressant. The final category of pills is pain killers. Pain killers such as OxyContin and Morphine use opioid receptors to block the ‘pain messages’ that are sent to the brain. When an overdose occurs, the user may experience feelings of euphoria, or being ‘high’. This being the case, many people who chose to use stimulants are trying to cram in schoolwork or long hours of working, people who use painkillers are either actually trying to relieve pain or are overdosing to feel high, and people who use depressants continue to misuse them because of and physical and psychological dependence that develops. A study shows that ‘competitive’ universities with high academic standards report higher rates of prescription drug abuse among their students. Being second only to marijuana as the most abused drug in the past year, about 6.7 million people aging from 12 to 25 had reported taking a prescription drug for non medicinal purposes. This large popularity is from the wide variety of usage, relatively low costs, and that they are fairly easy to obtain. Certain studies show that young men and women usually get the drugs by getting them from family members, or from a person who is living with them in a frat or maternity house (Prescription). Many appealing reasons to misuse prescription drugs are portrayed to teenagers and young adults today, causing them to consider abusing these drugs, and the matter is only getting worse.
Many medicines exist that have properties that are captivating to people for reasons other than traditional use. Vicodin is the most popular drug that is used without a legitimate prescription, with 65.4% of people use it when they self-medicate. Vicodin is a strong pain reliever that has addictive properties. It is misused mostly among young adults and professional athletes. Two other painkillers that are highly addictive are Morphine and OxyContin. They are relatively the same, but when OxyContin is chewed or crushed, a very large amount of oxycodone is released into the body, creating potential for a deadly overdose. Ritalin, a mild stimulant that is prescribed mostly to children who have attention deficit disorder, has several enticing attributes that cause many people to use the drug illegally. Illicit users would use the drug for three main reasons. Ritalin suppresses appetite, which is appealing to people who want to lose weight, it also stimulates the brain, causing increased concentration and makes the user able to stay awake for long lapses of time. The third reason is the traditional reason for drug misuse: to get high, or feel euphoric (Prescription). Prescription medications are considered to be the biggest up and coming drug problem for the young generation of today because the qualities they hold can lure people under pressure to abuse them.
The youth drug abuse revolution that is being undertaken in our modern culture has developed from plants found in nature, to overdosing on the modern medications created by professional pharmacists. In the past, drugs like LSD and crack by 3 out of 10 teenagers, while prescription medication abuse hardly even existed. Today, many forms of medicated drug abuse are causing problems in the youth, with almost 7 million young people reporting their misuse of a medication. Prescription drugs are appealing to many people because they can give a euphoric feeling, relieve pain very effectively, help cause weight loss, and stimulate the mind for higher concentration and awareness. Also, along with the steady rate of marijuana use, many types of new street drugs are being found or invented. Salvia Divinorum and Bath Salts are two drugs that have sprung up in America since 2008, and are very enticing to the teenagers and young adults who learn about them. The illicit use and abuse of street drugs and medicinal drugs among teenagers and young adults is a very crucial problem today when compared to the 1970s and the 1980s because of the cultural influences that affect the availability and acceptance of the drugs from peers.
06-27-2011, 07:03 PM
#2
Reptilectric
Do a barrel roll!
Originally posted by getxscared
This was my term paper for my 10th grade english class, so it may not be perfect, but I got a 195 out of 200. Its mainly about drugs and teenagers and how they have developed. Enjoy!
From the 1970s to today, the world of recreational drugs has changed in many ways, but not completely. In the past, drugs like LSD and crack-cocaine were the “big thing;” now, the usage of drugs is turning towards prescription drugs like Vicodin and Xanax. Prescription drugs are more dangerous for many reasons; foremost, because of their availability. Naturally, high availability most definitely will cause a high rate of usage, resulting in many people abusing prescription drugs. There are many programs that focus on drug education and prevention, but some would argue that these programs do not work, because of such easy accessability. Therefore, teenage drug use is a more serious issue today than it was in the seventies and eighties due to the increase in availability, especially regarding prescription drugs.
Drug use among teenagers and people in general has been changing as time goes on. In the 1970s, drugs were becoming very popular without people knowing the whole truth about them (Robison). LSD was very popular in this time period, and was somewhat popular among teenagers, and has reached its top usage rate of thirty percent. Fortunately, today, that rate has dropped to just below ten percent, and LSD has been proven to be non-addictive (Teen). During the 1980s, the use of crack-cocaine beat alcohol by eight percent in a poll asking which substance is the most serious problem today. Crack was used so often because it was very cheap, very available, and also caused many people to become addicted. These two drugs were the drugs on the rise throughout the 1970s and the 1980s, but since then, the usage rate among teens and young adults has dropped significantly (Robison).
In the current generation, it is easy to see the change in popularity, and the usage rates of drugs among teenagers. While the use of tobacco, methamphetamines, cocaine, alcohol, and LSD has dropped, marijuana is still being used by about the same amount of high school kids as it has been five years ago, and the abuse of prescription drugs is on the rise. Sixty percent of teenage drug users use marijuana and marijuana only. This is the highest percentage of drug abuse for teenagers today, and is obviously a serious problem (Anderson). Another serious issue is that the rate of teens abusing prescription drugs is on the rise. Being abused by over twenty percent of the American population, prescription drugs are the most widely abused drug in the United States. Prescription drug abuse is the use of medicinal drugs for non-therapeutic or recreational reasons, selling one’s prescription to people who do not have one, and taking more of the medicine than what is prescribed. A study shows that painkillers such as Vicodin and OxyContin have been abused by twenty percent of teenagers in America (Prescription). The rate of prescription drug abuse among teenagers has been, and still is, increasing at an alarming rate.
Today, although many of the original drugs have decreased in use among teenagers, there are many other issues that can add to the current problem. For example, there are many misconceptions about the drugs, their effects, and the type of people who use them. A specific example illustrates this on January 14, 2005; a law-school student in California had taken OxyContin and drank alcohol later, causing his death. His mother said that she had no idea this would happen because her son was a promising student and had no history of drug use. Today though, more people are starting to realize that prescription drugs are being used for other reasons than just to get high. Seventy-nine percent of the people who had abused a painkiller said they had done so to relieve pain, and about eleven percent said that the drugs were taken to get high. Other reasons for the use of prescription drugs were because they were cheaper for parties than alcohol were, and drugs like Ritalin were taken to stay awake during the night to keep up with schoolwork (Prescription). Many parents who think that their children are not at risk of drug abuse may be in for a surprise in the future.
Many factors are contributing to the steady use of drugs among teenagers and young adults of this generation. The average age for the first alcohol use is 12 years old, and the average age for the first marijuana use is 13 years old (Anderson). This early introduction to illicit drugs causes many people to accept the recreational use of drugs and alcohol and increases social acceptance. Increased availability is also another factor adding to the abuse of drugs. When more of the drug is available to people, the purchase and use of it will be more casual, and not seen as a problem to the people in the environment. Many people who abuse prescription drugs obtain the drugs by asking a person who is given the drug by a pharmacist. In fact, 1 in 4 young adults given the prescription were asked to share their pills, while 1 in 5 had said they had sold or traded away medicine at some point (Prescription). This also shows the influence that pressure has on young adults to use the drugs socially, or for a reason other than the intended purpose. The influences that are pressed on the young group of today’s generation are keeping drug use from declining, and causing it to increase in some areas.
Along with the drugs that have been here a long time like cocaine, marijuana, LSD, and medicinal drugs, there are new types of drugs being invented and used to get high. Because these drugs are new to the street, there have been very few or even no laws passed to ban the use of these new drugs. A new drug, Salvia, or Salvia Divinorum, has come to the market around 2008. Salvia is used in Mexico for medicinal purposes; though now, the drug is used recreationally and in much higher concentrations than originally used. Salvia is a potent drug when a somewhat large amount is ingested, and its effects are compared to that of LSD. The spread of Salvia was mainly caused when an outbreak of YouTube videos of people using the drug and showing its effects spread across the internet. Over 3,500 videos of young adults experimenting with the drug were posted on YouTube, causing the awareness and the popularity of the drug to steadily rise, and because of the spread on the internet, the drug is widely known by teens and young adults, whilst the parents have little to no knowledge of salvia. As of now, the possession of the plant is banned in only eight states throughout America, and most of the others have only considered banning the substance. Another new, and very dangerous drug, is ‘Bath Salts’. It is a highly addictive and potent drug and is not being used widely yet, but the fact that they are legal in most states and are a cheap high cause news of them to spread through the youth of America. Bath Salts have effects that can be compared to methamphetamines, but they are known to cause severe psychotic episodes. The drug is appealing to young adults and teenagers because it can be sold in convenient stores and gas stations for low prices, but the danger is not realized (Anderson). Many new drugs are being made and put on the market each year, but just because it is legal does not mean that it is not dangerous.
Although the problem with marijuana has not decreased in the last five years, prescription drug abuse is considered to be the real problem today. The reason this is believed to be true is because many teenagers and young adults take the drugs for reasons other than to get high, unlike marijuana where most people use the drug recreationally. The main reasons that people misuse prescription drugs are to feel relaxed, to get high, to stay awake, to concentrate, or to lose weight. There are three main categories of pills that are prescribed to patients by doctors; stimulants, depressants, and pain killers. Stimulants like Ritalin and Adderrall increase the user’s awareness, energy, and cause them to stay awake for long hours. A common stimulant that is widely known is caffeine. Depressants act like the opposite of a stimulant. They manipulate chemicals in the body that, in turn, slow down brain activity and cause the user to be sleepy or tired. Valium and Xanax are the common depressants prescribed to patients, and alcohol is a common depressant. The final category of pills is pain killers. Pain killers such as OxyContin and Morphine use opioid receptors to block the ‘pain messages’ that are sent to the brain. When an overdose occurs, the user may experience feelings of euphoria, or being ‘high’. This being the case, many people who chose to use stimulants are trying to cram in schoolwork or long hours of working, people who use painkillers are either actually trying to relieve pain or are overdosing to feel high, and people who use depressants continue to misuse them because of and physical and psychological dependence that develops. A study shows that ‘competitive’ universities with high academic standards report higher rates of prescription drug abuse among their students. Being second only to marijuana as the most abused drug in the past year, about 6.7 million people aging from 12 to 25 had reported taking a prescription drug for non medicinal purposes. This large popularity is from the wide variety of usage, relatively low costs, and that they are fairly easy to obtain. Certain studies show that young men and women usually get the drugs by getting them from family members, or from a person who is living with them in a frat or maternity house (Prescription). Many appealing reasons to misuse prescription drugs are portrayed to teenagers and young adults today, causing them to consider abusing these drugs, and the matter is only getting worse.
Many medicines exist that have properties that are captivating to people for reasons other than traditional use. Vicodin is the most popular drug that is used without a legitimate prescription, with 65.4% of people use it when they self-medicate. Vicodin is a strong pain reliever that has addictive properties. It is misused mostly among young adults and professional athletes. Two other painkillers that are highly addictive are Morphine and OxyContin. They are relatively the same, but when OxyContin is chewed or crushed, a very large amount of oxycodone is released into the body, creating potential for a deadly overdose. Ritalin, a mild stimulant that is prescribed mostly to children who have attention deficit disorder, has several enticing attributes that cause many people to use the drug illegally. Illicit users would use the drug for three main reasons. Ritalin suppresses appetite, which is appealing to people who want to lose weight, it also stimulates the brain, causing increased concentration and makes the user able to stay awake for long lapses of time. The third reason is the traditional reason for drug misuse: to get high, or feel euphoric (Prescription). Prescription medications are considered to be the biggest up and coming drug problem for the young generation of today because the qualities they hold can lure people under pressure to abuse them.
The youth drug abuse revolution that is being undertaken in our modern culture has developed from plants found in nature, to overdosing on the modern medications created by professional pharmacists. In the past, drugs like LSD and crack by 3 out of 10 teenagers, while prescription medication abuse hardly even existed. Today, many forms of medicated drug abuse are causing problems in the youth, with almost 7 million young people reporting their misuse of a medication. Prescription drugs are appealing to many people because they can give a euphoric feeling, relieve pain very effectively, help cause weight loss, and stimulate the mind for higher concentration and awareness. Also, along with the steady rate of marijuana use, many types of new street drugs are being found or invented. Salvia Divinorum and Bath Salts are two drugs that have sprung up in America since 2008, and are very enticing to the teenagers and young adults who learn about them. The illicit use and abuse of street drugs and medicinal drugs among teenagers and young adults is a very crucial problem today when compared to the 1970s and the 1980s because of the cultural influences that affect the availability and acceptance of the drugs from peers.
Its mainly about drugs and teenagers and how they have developed. Enjoy!Generations of the Drug Sensation
From the 1970s to today, the world of recreational drugs has changed in many ways, but not completely. In the past, drugs like LSD and crack-cocaine were the “big thing;” now, the usage of drugs is turning towards prescription drugs like Vicodin and Xanax. Prescription drugs are more dangerous for many reasons; foremost, because of their availability. Naturally, high availability most definitely will cause a high rate of usage, resulting in many people abusing prescription drugs. There are many programs that focus on drug education and prevention, but some would argue that these programs do not work, because of such easy accessability. Therefore, teenage drug use is a more serious issue today than it was in the seventies and eighties due to the increase in availability, especially regarding prescription drugs.
Drug use among teenagers and people in general has been changing as time goes on. In the 1970s, drugs were becoming very popular without people knowing the whole truth about them (Robison). LSD was very popular in this time period, and was somewhat popular among teenagers, and has reached its top usage rate of thirty percent. Fortunately, today, that rate has dropped to just below ten percent, and LSD has been proven to be non-addictive (Teen). During the 1980s, the use of crack-cocaine beat alcohol by eight percent in a poll asking which substance is the most serious problem today. Crack was used so often because it was very cheap, very available, and also caused many people to become addicted. These two drugs were the drugs on the rise throughout the 1970s and the 1980s, but since then, the usage rate among teens and young adults has dropped significantly (Robison).
In the current generation, it is easy to see the change in popularity, and the usage rates of drugs among teenagers. While the use of tobacco, methamphetamines, cocaine, alcohol, and LSD has dropped, marijuana is still being used by about the same amount of high school kids as it has been five years ago, and the abuse of prescription drugs is on the rise. Sixty percent of teenage drug users use marijuana and marijuana only. This is the highest percentage of drug abuse for teenagers today, and is obviously a serious problem (Anderson). Another serious issue is that the rate of teens abusing prescription drugs is on the rise. Being abused by over twenty percent of the American population, prescription drugs are the most widely abused drug in the United States. Prescription drug abuse is the use of medicinal drugs for non-therapeutic or recreational reasons, selling one’s prescription to people who do not have one, and taking more of the medicine than what is prescribed. A study shows that painkillers such as Vicodin and OxyContin have been abused by twenty percent of teenagers in America (Prescription). The rate of prescription drug abuse among teenagers has been, and still is, increasing at an alarming rate.
Today, although many of the original drugs have decreased in use among teenagers, there are many other issues that can add to the current problem. For example, there are many misconceptions about the drugs, their effects, and the type of people who use them. A specific example illustrates this on January 14, 2005; a law-school student in California had taken OxyContin and drank alcohol later, causing his death. His mother said that she had no idea this would happen because her son was a promising student and had no history of drug use. Today though, more people are starting to realize that prescription drugs are being used for other reasons than just to get high. Seventy-nine percent of the people who had abused a painkiller said they had done so to relieve pain, and about eleven percent said that the drugs were taken to get high. Other reasons for the use of prescription drugs were because they were cheaper for parties than alcohol were, and drugs like Ritalin were taken to stay awake during the night to keep up with schoolwork (Prescription). Many parents who think that their children are not at risk of drug abuse may be in for a surprise in the future.
Many factors are contributing to the steady use of drugs among teenagers and young adults of this generation. The average age for the first alcohol use is 12 years old, and the average age for the first marijuana use is 13 years old (Anderson). This early introduction to illicit drugs causes many people to accept the recreational use of drugs and alcohol and increases social acceptance. Increased availability is also another factor adding to the abuse of drugs. When more of the drug is available to people, the purchase and use of it will be more casual, and not seen as a problem to the people in the environment. Many people who abuse prescription drugs obtain the drugs by asking a person who is given the drug by a pharmacist. In fact, 1 in 4 young adults given the prescription were asked to share their pills, while 1 in 5 had said they had sold or traded away medicine at some point (Prescription). This also shows the influence that pressure has on young adults to use the drugs socially, or for a reason other than the intended purpose. The influences that are pressed on the young group of today’s generation are keeping drug use from declining, and causing it to increase in some areas.
Along with the drugs that have been here a long time like cocaine, marijuana, LSD, and medicinal drugs, there are new types of drugs being invented and used to get high. Because these drugs are new to the street, there have been very few or even no laws passed to ban the use of these new drugs. A new drug, Salvia, or Salvia Divinorum, has come to the market around 2008. Salvia is used in Mexico for medicinal purposes; though now, the drug is used recreationally and in much higher concentrations than originally used. Salvia is a potent drug when a somewhat large amount is ingested, and its effects are compared to that of LSD. The spread of Salvia was mainly caused when an outbreak of YouTube videos of people using the drug and showing its effects spread across the internet. Over 3,500 videos of young adults experimenting with the drug were posted on YouTube, causing the awareness and the popularity of the drug to steadily rise, and because of the spread on the internet, the drug is widely known by teens and young adults, whilst the parents have little to no knowledge of salvia. As of now, the possession of the plant is banned in only eight states throughout America, and most of the others have only considered banning the substance. Another new, and very dangerous drug, is ‘Bath Salts’. It is a highly addictive and potent drug and is not being used widely yet, but the fact that they are legal in most states and are a cheap high cause news of them to spread through the youth of America. Bath Salts have effects that can be compared to methamphetamines, but they are known to cause severe psychotic episodes. The drug is appealing to young adults and teenagers because it can be sold in convenient stores and gas stations for low prices, but the danger is not realized (Anderson). Many new drugs are being made and put on the market each year, but just because it is legal does not mean that it is not dangerous.
Although the problem with marijuana has not decreased in the last five years, prescription drug abuse is considered to be the real problem today. The reason this is believed to be true is because many teenagers and young adults take the drugs for reasons other than to get high, unlike marijuana where most people use the drug recreationally. The main reasons that people misuse prescription drugs are to feel relaxed, to get high, to stay awake, to concentrate, or to lose weight. There are three main categories of pills that are prescribed to patients by doctors; stimulants, depressants, and pain killers. Stimulants like Ritalin and Adderrall increase the user’s awareness, energy, and cause them to stay awake for long hours. A common stimulant that is widely known is caffeine. Depressants act like the opposite of a stimulant. They manipulate chemicals in the body that, in turn, slow down brain activity and cause the user to be sleepy or tired. Valium and Xanax are the common depressants prescribed to patients, and alcohol is a common depressant. The final category of pills is pain killers. Pain killers such as OxyContin and Morphine use opioid receptors to block the ‘pain messages’ that are sent to the brain. When an overdose occurs, the user may experience feelings of euphoria, or being ‘high’. This being the case, many people who chose to use stimulants are trying to cram in schoolwork or long hours of working, people who use painkillers are either actually trying to relieve pain or are overdosing to feel high, and people who use depressants continue to misuse them because of and physical and psychological dependence that develops. A study shows that ‘competitive’ universities with high academic standards report higher rates of prescription drug abuse among their students. Being second only to marijuana as the most abused drug in the past year, about 6.7 million people aging from 12 to 25 had reported taking a prescription drug for non medicinal purposes. This large popularity is from the wide variety of usage, relatively low costs, and that they are fairly easy to obtain. Certain studies show that young men and women usually get the drugs by getting them from family members, or from a person who is living with them in a frat or maternity house (Prescription). Many appealing reasons to misuse prescription drugs are portrayed to teenagers and young adults today, causing them to consider abusing these drugs, and the matter is only getting worse.
Many medicines exist that have properties that are captivating to people for reasons other than traditional use. Vicodin is the most popular drug that is used without a legitimate prescription, with 65.4% of people use it when they self-medicate. Vicodin is a strong pain reliever that has addictive properties. It is misused mostly among young adults and professional athletes. Two other painkillers that are highly addictive are Morphine and OxyContin. They are relatively the same, but when OxyContin is chewed or crushed, a very large amount of oxycodone is released into the body, creating potential for a deadly overdose. Ritalin, a mild stimulant that is prescribed mostly to children who have attention deficit disorder, has several enticing attributes that cause many people to use the drug illegally. Illicit users would use the drug for three main reasons. Ritalin suppresses appetite, which is appealing to people who want to lose weight, it also stimulates the brain, causing increased concentration and makes the user able to stay awake for long lapses of time. The third reason is the traditional reason for drug misuse: to get high, or feel euphoric (Prescription). Prescription medications are considered to be the biggest up and coming drug problem for the young generation of today because the qualities they hold can lure people under pressure to abuse them.
The youth drug abuse revolution that is being undertaken in our modern culture has developed from plants found in nature, to overdosing on the modern medications created by professional pharmacists. In the past, drugs like LSD and crack by 3 out of 10 teenagers, while prescription medication abuse hardly even existed. Today, many forms of medicated drug abuse are causing problems in the youth, with almost 7 million young people reporting their misuse of a medication. Prescription drugs are appealing to many people because they can give a euphoric feeling, relieve pain very effectively, help cause weight loss, and stimulate the mind for higher concentration and awareness. Also, along with the steady rate of marijuana use, many types of new street drugs are being found or invented. Salvia Divinorum and Bath Salts are two drugs that have sprung up in America since 2008, and are very enticing to the teenagers and young adults who learn about them. The illicit use and abuse of street drugs and medicinal drugs among teenagers and young adults is a very crucial problem today when compared to the 1970s and the 1980s because of the cultural influences that affect the availability and acceptance of the drugs from peers.
Another NO-ENDING problem to handle all over the future!
06-27-2011, 07:11 PM
#3
getxscared
Space Ninja
Plz delete this double post!
The following user thanked Newfie for this useful post:
06-30-2011, 05:11 PM
#6
getxscared
Space Ninja
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