Chapter 1

Drugs in Perspective

Substance Use Cost to Society

$776 for addictive disorders$112 million for diseases attributed to

substance abuse$2,933 billion for diseases for which

substance abuse is a risk factor$336 million for patients with secondary

diagnosis of substance abuseTotal Public Cost: $4,157 Billion

Problems Associated with Drugs

Traffic Fatalities Murders Child Abuse Drowning Rapes Suicides Spousal Abuse

Definitions

Drug: Any substance that alters one’s ability to function emotionally, physically, intellectually, financially or socially

Psychoactive Drugs: Any substance that has the capability of altering mood, perception or behavior.

Drug Misuse: The intentional or inappropriate use of prescribed or over-the-counter drugs.

Drug Abuse: The intentional and inappropriate use of a drug resulting in physical, emotional, financial, intellectual or social consequences for the user.

Historical Perspectives of Drug Use

Alcohol-Beverages might have been fermented intentionally as early as about 10,000 B.C.

-Early Egyptians, Hebrews, Chinese, Greeks and Romans were fond of alcohol.

Alcohol played a significant role in the early history of the United States (one reason the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth was that they ran out of beer)

Marijuana-Cannabis (source for marijuana) has been cultivated for its fiber since at least 4,700 years.

-As far back as 4,700 years ago, the Chinese Emperor Shen Nung prescribed it for aliments such as gout, malaria, and gas pains.

-Use of marijuana was noted in the Americas as early as 1545.

-By the late 1800s numerous reports detailed cannabis use for many medical reasons.

Narcotics-Narcotics is a term used interchangeably with terms opiates or opioids.

-Opiate refers to opium and derivatives of opium

-The earliest reference to the opium poppy was 6,000 year old Sumerian tablet and it was referred to as the “joy plant”

-Opium was a staple in ancient Greece and Rome.

-In the Arab world, opium was widely used because the Koran forbid alcohol use

-In 1805, the active ingredient in opium was identified and called morphine

-During the Civil War many soldiers became addicted to morphine (soldier’s disease)

-In the late 1800s a semisynthetic drug “nonaddicting” wonder drug was developed to relieve pain and replace morphine. It was called heroin.

Coffee-One of the earliest written references to coffee dates back to 900 A.D. in Arabia.

-The Chinese reportedly used caffeine almost 5,000 years ago.

-The Koran condemned coffee as an intoxicant and banned it’s use.

-In the 1600s coffeehouses because centers for learning (called Penny Universities).

Cocaine-Ancient drawings suggest that chewing coca leaves (cocaine is in the coca leaves) was popular prior to the rise of the Incan Empire as early as 3000 B.C..

-When the Spaniards conquered the Incas they realized the importance of the coca leaves to the natives

-In the later part of the 19th century a popular red Bordeaux wine called Mariani’s Coca Wine (Vin Mariani) was marketed.

-Cocaine was popular among Freud, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

-The original formula for Coca-cola contained cocaine.

-Cocaine became more of a recreational drug in the 1970s.

Amphetamines-Amphetamine are powerful, prescription stimulants synthesized in the late 1800s in Germany

-Amphetamines are still used medically and abused for their powerful, long acting stimulating effect

Sedative-Hypnotic Drugs-Sedative-Hypnotic drugs are those drugs that are capable of inducing sedation and/or sleep. They include barbiturates non-barbiturates, minor tranquilizers, and inhalants.

Hallucinogens-Hallucinogens are relatively new drugs and represent drugs capable of inducing both delusions and hallucinations.

-Examples of the these drugs include LSD, psilocybin, mescaline, and jimsonweed

Tobacco-Tobacco has been widely used for centuries.

-At first tobacco was used for medicinal purposes and then mainly for recreational purposes.

Summary

Drug use is a valid concern because of its effects on individuals, families and societies

The Egyptians, Hebrews, Greeks, and Romans used alcohol and it figured prominently in the development of the United States

The rum trade had a role in the economic expansion in the United States

One of the earliest written accounts of marijuana use dates back to China where people took it for medical problems

Many early civilizations used opium The popularity of cocaine rose after it

was included in many products such as medicines, wine, and Coca-cola

Naturally produced hallucinogens have a long history