1. The Truth About Drugs Ms. Meade Health 10

2. Some Telling Statistics  92% of those who begin using ecstasy later turn to other drugs  8% of the American population aged 12 or older (19.9 million) were illicit drug users in a survey done in 2007.  208 million people internationally consume illegal drugs- more than the combined populations of California, New York, the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain and Australia.  400 Billion dollars change hands yearly on illicit drugs-which is almost double the international movie industry.

3. Continued  What young people and adults don’t know about drugs can kill them. Youth today are exposed earlier than ever to drugs.  By survey, 50% of the students in public schools in the United States have tried an illicit drug, or are using one, by the time they are 17.  Abuse of alcohol and illicit drugs costs society an estimated $276 billion annually.  Substance abusers incur 300 percent higher medical costs than non-abusers.

4. The Truth About Drugs  58% of all USA local police and other law enforcement staff identified methamphetamine abuse as their biggest drug problem.  They are one-third less productive on the job and are two to five times more likely to be absent from work eight or more days a year.  Studies suggest that if a young person can reach the age of 21 without using illicit drugs, they are unlikely ever to do so. The most disturbing aspect of this problem is how drug abuse damages youth and the threat this poses for the future.

5. WHY DO PEOPLE TAKE DRUGS?  People take drugs because they want to change something in their lives.  These are some reasons young people have given for taking drugs: To fit in (peer pressure) To escape or relax To relieve boredom To seem grown up To rebel To experiment  They think drugs are the solution. But eventually, the drugs become the problem.  The consequence of drug use are always worse than the problem one is trying to solve with them.

6. Definitions  Addiction: a state of physical or mental dependence on a substance, especially an illegal drug or one liable to have a damaging effect.  Drug: substance that is not food or nutrition, that when put into the body, change the way the body works or the way the person thinks or feels  Illegal Drug: A drug that is not allowed by law because of its dangerous effects.

7. More Definitions  Narcotic: a drug affecting the central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord) in a way that can produce dizziness, euphoria, loss of memory, lack of coordination and unconsciousness.  Withdrawal: the unpleasant physical and emotional reactions felt when coming off a drug. These can range from mild discomfort to intense pain and seizures, depending on the drug. Avoiding this pain is one reason addicts cannot come off drugs, even when they want to quit.

8. HOW DO DRUGS WORK?  Drugs are essentially poisons. The amount taken determines the effect. A small amount acts as a stimulant (speeds you up). A greater amount acts as a sedative (slows you down). An even larger amount poisons and can kill you.  This is true of any drug; only the amount needed to achieve the effect differs.

9. HOW DO DRUGS WORK?  Drugs block off all sensations, the desirable ones with the unwanted. And while drugs might be of short-term value in handling of pain, they wipe out ability and alertness and muddy one’s thinking.  Medicines are drugs that are intended to speed up or slow down or change something about the way the body is working to try to make it work better. Sometimes they are necessary. But they are still drugs. So if medicines are not used as they are supposed to be used, they can be as dangerous as illegal drugs.

10. DRUGS AFFECT THE MIND  Normally, when a person remembers something, the mind is very fast and information comes quickly.  But drugs blur memory, causing blank spots.  Drugs make a person feel slow or stupid and can cause him/her to have failures in life.  And as he has more failures in life and life gets harder, he wants more drugs to help him deal with the problem.  This can distort the drug user’s perception of what is happening around him. As a result, the person’s actions may appear very odd or irrational. He can even become violent.

11. Source  “The Truth About Drugs Campaign”, The Foundation for a Drug Free World, 2009.