HOOKED ON SOMETHING? Ricardo Gómez Flores

Psychoactive drugs are not the only cause of addiction.

Internet is a good example of this …

Humans can easily depend on substances or situations that provide pleasurable sensations

PLEASUREVSADDICTION These include… Food Gambling Alcoholic beberages Sex Sport watching Work All of which Produce PLEASURE and ADDICTIVE BEHAVIOR

Pleasure is detected and processed in a specific brain region, the reward pathway… The brain reward circuit involves the nucleus accumbens and the ventral tegmental area.

The ventral tegmental area (VTA), a group of neurons at the very centre of the brain, plays an especially important role in this circuit. The VTA receives information from several other regions that tell it how well various fundamental needs, and more specifically human needs, are being satisfied. The VTA then forwards this information to another structure further forward in the brain: the nucleus accumbens. To send this information to the nucleus accumbens, the VTA uses a particular chemical messenger: dopamine. The increase in the level of dopamine in the nucleus accumbens, and in other brain regions, reinforces the behaviours by which we satisfy our fundamental needs. dopamineother brain regions

Dopamine, a "reward" neurotransmitter, can be triggered by pleasurable activities like eating and sex, and by drugs ranging from alcohol and nicotine to marijuana and cocaine. Dopamine interacts with specific dopamine receptors on “reward” neurons and the sense of pleasure begins…

However, pleasure sensation lasts only a few seconds because the dopamine is captured from the receptor and taken back to its original source…

Coacaine has the potential to delay this re-uptake of dopamine thus extending the pleasure period…

Other drugs also have the same effect of increasing the intensity of dopamine release and delaying dopamine re-uptake…

However, excesive stimulation of pleasure centers damages the brain…

Positron Emission Tomography (PET) Positron emission tomography (PET) is a test that uses a special type of camera and a special test medicine (radioactive tracer) to look at organs in the body. During the test, the tracer is put into a vein (IV) in the patient´s arm. The tracer gives off tiny positively charged particles (positrons) that make signals. A camera records the tracer's signals as the tracer moves through the body and collects in organs. The camera's recordings are made into pictures on a computer.

controlon cocaine This pictures shows the differential use of glucose, an essential Souce of energy for the brain, between a healthy individual and A cocaine addict, which clearly depicts a significant reduction in Glucose use.

Ethanol use significantly reduces glucose use by the brain.

MDMA (methylenedioxymethamphetamine; “ecstasy”) significantly Reduces the levels of serotonin which is involved in many disorders, including depression, anxiety, impulsivity, and sleep abnormalities.

Drugs in food?

The first reported drug included in a food source was cocaine. This was a period of time when many patent medicines contained coca leaves or cocaine (an alkaloid extracted from the leaves), the most popular was 'Vin Mariani', invented by an Italian physician working in France, Angelo Mariani. Vin Mariani was widely imitated, and Pemberton at first produced an imitation of Vin Mariani before formulating his own concoction, Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola never contained much cocaine - and the amount was quickly reduced to almost undetectable amounts after a few years, when cocaine's negative properties started to become evident. (Estimates are the syrup contained 1 part in 50 million - that would be about 1/2 ounce in 25 million gallons of Coca Cola). Since 1929 there has been no cocaine in Coca Cola. The leaves were still used for flavor, but the alkaloids were completely removed.

There were three types of medicines often containing cocaine-- topical anesthetics such as toothache powders, catarrh medicines for relieving head and chest congestion, and medicinal (probably also recreational) cocaine-containing wines advocated for their numerous beneficial effects. Cocaine toothache drops were popular with children and with their parents. Not only would the medicine numb the pain, but it could also put the user in a "better" mood.

Cocaine-containing throat lozenges, "indispensable for singers, teachers, and orators." In addition to quieting a sore throat, these lozenges undoubtedly provided the "pick-me-up" to keep these professionals performing at their peak. This box of lozenges is from a Belgium pharmacy (c. 1900). Local pharmacies often bought their drugs in bulk and packaged them for consumers under their own labels.

Heroin was commercially developed by Bayer Pharmaceutical and was marketed by Bayer and other companies (c. 1900) for several medicinal uses including cough suppression.

Mrs. Winslow's Soothing Syrup was an indispensable aid to mothers and child-care workers. Containing one grain (65 mg) of morphine per fluid ounce, it effectively quieted restless infants and small children. It probably also helped mothers relax after a hard day's work. The company used various media to promote their product, including recipe books, calendars, and trade cards such as the one shown here from 1887 (A calendar is on the reverse side.).

Conclusions

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