Nov
10
Drug Abuse Is a Serious Problem
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Agree 100% of the way. Many of Americans are turning toward illegal substances. According to the article some 18 million Americans are addicted or abuse by drugs and alcohol. Tobacco let alone cause about half a million deaths each year. That’s more deaths combine with AIDS, alcohol, drug abuse, car crashes, suicides, and fires combined. And nearly half of all Americans say they know someone with a drug problem. Honestly when this is all coming down on paper, it’s scary. I mean everyday it’s supposed to get better, where all in fact it is getting worse. Us Americans, we are supposed to make our world a better one. The cost of dealing with illicit drugs alone approaches $67 billion annually. Every man, woman and child in America pays nearly $1,000 a year to cover the costs of unnecessary health care, additional law enforcement, auto accidents, crime and lost productivity resulting from substance abuse. The problematic use of alcohol, illicit drugs and tobacco places an enormous burden on society, harming health, family life, the economy and public safety. Our society is being corrupt day by day by drugs. Many people stand against and petition, and try to destroy this drug problem. Substance abuse is negatively affecting the quality of education in our nation’s schools, from the elementary level, to college campuses. Students who drink, and use and sell drugs create an atmosphere that’s dangerous and unsafe for other students and school staff. They’re at risk of dropping out, and often lack motivation and self-discipline. And, they can be disruptive and violent when they’re under the influence. We together need to make a positive change for us Americans and the younger generation that stands after us.
Nov
10
The War Next Door
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I was reading about drug related violence and i came upon this story. I thought it was pretty interesting. It is about Marcelo Garza Y Garza didn’t want a lot of security around when he went out with his family one night last fall. Like most residents of Monterrey; a modern, U.S., friendly metropolis in northern Mexico; Garza believed his city was still one of the safest in the country. But Garza was the top criminal investigator for the border state Nuevo Leon. That made him a marked man not just to the drug lords who had moved into Monterrey’s posh suburbs but also to certain members of the local security services who, police say, have been recruited as hit men for drug cartels, earning as much as $15,000 for each kill. Garza went to a children’s art exhibit that night at a church in San Pedro, a wealthy suburb of Monterrey. As he stepped out for a moment with his daughter to take a cell-phone call, a gunman shot him repeatedly in the head with a semiautomatic pistol. A witness testified that the triggerman was left-handed; leading investigators to suspect Israel Ibarra, a rogue member of the suburb’s elite SWAT unit, police sources say. But before police could arrest Ibarra, another narco gunman eliminated him. Like most of the more than 100 other drug-related killings that have occurred in or near Monterrey since Garza’s death, the case remains unsolved. This year Mexico as a whole has logged more than 1,300 drug-related murders, well on pace to eclipse the 2,000 of 2006. The atrocities would seem more familiar south of Baghdad than south of the border: mass executions, contract shootings carried out at funerals and ghastly videotaped beheadings posted on the Internet while victims’ heads are tossed into the streets.
Nov
3
Xanax
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Every day people are being hook on prescription drugs. People are also finding ways to recieve and get thier hands on pills. Xanax is prescription tranquilizer which depresses the nervous system in a way similar to alcohol. Xanax has found its way from pharmacies to drug dealers, and is being abused by young, healthy people who want to get high. These club-hopping, twenty-something, casual “Xannie poppers” are using the drug in combination with other stimulants, from alcohol to cocaine. Essentially, withdrawal symptoms from Xanax feel like the opposite of the therapeutic effects. Xanax withdrawal can produce especially severe withdrawal symptoms. Withdrawal symptoms that are similar to those in alcohol withdrawal, include jittery, shaky feelings and any of the following, rapid heartbeat, shaky hands, insomnia or disturbed sleep, sweating, irritability, anxiety and agitation. Used to treat many disorders from anxiety to stress, Xanax addiction results in the overuse of the drug to suppress unwanted feelings. Whether the drug is taken every night to fall asleep or continually throughout the day to remain calm, Xanax addiction progresses quickly and has become a serious health problem for many people. Xanax when abused is taken orally, chewed, crushed (then snorted like cocaine), or crushed (then dissolved in water and injected like heroin). Xanax has depressant effects on brain areas that regulate wakefulness and alertness, very similar in effect to alcohol and sedative barbiturates. A Xanax overdose happens when you consume more Xanax than your body can safely handle. Xanax abusers are constantly flirting with drug overdose, and the difference between the high they’re seeking and serious injury or death is often quite small. An overdose of Xanax, alone or after combining it with alcohol can be fatal.
Oct
27
Meth
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Meth now is becoming a more popular drug today. Its one the most addicting drug known to man kind. Methamphetamine is a stimulant drug chemically related to amphetamine but with stronger effects on the central nervous system. It is a white, odorless, bitter-tasting crystalline powder that easily dissolves in water or alcohol. Meth is made of highly unpredictable, toxic substances that are melded in differing combinations, forming what some have described as a “mix of laundry detergent and lighter fluid.” Street names for the drug include “speed,” “meth,” “crystal,” and “crank.” Meth can either be snorted or injected, or in its crystal form ‘ice’ smoked in a pipe, and brings on a feeling of exhilaration and a sharpening of focus. Smoking meth results in an instantaneous dose of almost pure drug to the brain, giving a huge rush followed by a feeling of euphoria for anything from 2-16 hours. The effects of meth can last 6 to 8 hours. After the initial “rush,” there is typically a state of high agitation that in some individuals can lead to violent behavior. Meth’s effects increases arousal in the central nervous system by pumping up levels of two neurotransmitters, norepinephrine and dopamine. At low doses, meth boosts alertness and blocks hunger and fatigue. At higher doses, meth causes exhilaration and euphoria. At very high doses, the effects of meth can cause agitation, paranoia, and bizarre behavior. Anxiety, emotional swings, and paranoia are the most common psychological effects due to chronic use of meth. Symptoms increase with long-term use, and can involve paranoid delusions and hallucinations. Violence and self-destructive behavior are common. The side effects of meth include: paranoia, short term memory loss, wild rages and mood swings as well as damage to your immune system.
Oct
20
Pot smoking hurts fertility
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Men who smoke marijuana frequently have significantly less seminal fluid, a lower total sperm count, and sperm that behave abnormally, all of which may affect fertility adversely. The bottom line is, the active ingredients in marijuana are doing something to sperm, and the numbers are in the direction toward infertility. We don’t know exactly what is happening to change sperm functioning, but we think it is one of two things: THC tetrahydrocannabinol, the psychoactive chemical in pot may be causing improper timing of sperm function by direct stimulation, or it may be bypassing natural inhibition mechanisms. Whatever the cause, the sperm are swimming too fast, too early…. The timing is all wrong; these sperm will experience burnout before they reach the egg and would not be capable of fertilization. Many men who use the drug have fathered children. The men who are most affected likely have naturally occurring borderline fertility potential, and THC from marijuana may push them over the edge into infertility. THC remains stored in fat for a long period, so the process may be quite slow. We can’t say that everything will go back to normal…. It’s difficult to know who is at risk. I definitely would advise anyone trying to conceive not to smoke marijuana, and that would include women as well as men. Two small studies presented to a fertility conference suggest that marijuana use and excessive body fat may make it harder for a man’s sperm to complete their upstream swim to fertilize an egg. A study of 22 college students who were heavy marijuana users suggested their sperm moved too fast too soon and lost oomph before they could reach their destination, the egg.
Oct
13
Drug Abuse and HIV!
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Drug abuse and addiction have been linked with HIV/AIDS since the beginning of the madness. Although injection drug use is well known in this regard, the role that non-injection drug abuse plays more generally in the spread of HIV is less recognized. This is partly due to the addictive and intoxicating effects of many drugs, which can change judgment and inhibition and lead people to engage in unsafe behaviors. People typically associate drug abuse and HIV/AIDS with injection drug use and needle sharing. HIV can be transmitted between users when injection drug users share “equipment” such as needles, syringes, and other drug injection. Other infections-such as hepatitis C can also be spread this way. Hepatitis C can cause liver disease and permanent liver damage. Drug abuse by any route can put a person at risk for getting HIV. Drug and alcohol intoxication affect judgment and can lead to unsafe sexual practices, which put people at risk for getting HIV or transmitting it to someone else. Drug abuse and addiction can affect a person’s overall health, changing susceptibility to HIV and progression of AIDS. Drugs of abuse and HIV both affect the brain. Research has shown that HIV causes greater neuronal injury among Methamphetamine abusers than among HIV patients who do not abuse drugs. In animal studies, Methamphetamine has been shown to increase the amount of HIV in brain cells. Drug abusers in treatment stop or reduce their drug use and related risk behaviors, including drug injection and unsafe sexual practices. Not only can STD’s be spread but also other kind of diseases can be spread also.
Oct
6
Cocaine
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Cocaine addiction is one of society’s greatest problems today. Individuals addicted to cocaine will do almost anything to get the drug. It’s a drug that has affected the rich, poor, and every one in between. Cocaine is one of the most addicting drugs known to mankind. Cocaine, the most powerful stimulant, is extracted from the leaves of the coca plant, which is indigenous to the Andean highlands of South America. It is a powerful brain stimulant and one of the most powerfully addictive drugs. Cocaine is produced as a white chunky powder. It is sold most often in aluminum foil, plastic or paper packets, or small vials. Cocaine is usually chopped into a fine powder with a razor blade on a small mirror or some other hard surface, arranged into small rows called “lines,” then quickly inhaled through the nose with a short straw or rolled up paper money. It can also be injected into the blood stream. There are four primary methods of ingesting cocaine. These are four ways cocaine is used, snorting which is absorbing cocaine through the mucous membranes of the nose. Injecting which users mix cocaine powder with water and use a syringe to inject the solution intravenously. Freebasing is when cocaine hydrochloride is converted to a “freebase” which can then be smoked. And last crack cocaine when cocaine hydrochloride is mixed with ammonia or baking soda and other ingredients, causing it to solidify into pellets or “rocks”. The crack is then smoked in glass pipes. Some symptoms of cocaine are anxiety, panic, bloody nose, increased energy, and talking rapidly.
Sep
29
As I was searching across Google blog search, I came across this blog. It was about performance-enhancing drugs and your teen athlete. I thought this blog was interesting because this is a major, and contriversol issue in sports and high school sports. First off performance-enhancing drugs and supplements are used to boost athletic performance, ward off fatigue and enhance physical appearance. They’re also taken to increase muscle mass and strength. But they can cause serious harm. They mention the different types of supplements and anabolic steroids teenagers and adults use. A most favorite one is creatine. Creatine is an over-the-counter supplement best known for improving performance to a small degree in sports involving short bursts of high-intensity activity, such as power lifting, wrestling and sprinting. Side effects include stomach pain, nausea, diarrhea and muscle cramps. High doses of creatine may be associated with kidney, liver or heart problems. After creatine, anabolic steroids are the most used supplements. The use of anabolic steroids is increasing among young athletes, despite the fact that these drugs are illegal without a prescription. Anabolic steroids are synthetic versions of testosterone and come in tablets, injections, patches or gels. They build muscle and increase endurance, and are particularly popular with bodybuilders and football players. The truth why teens use anabolic steroid and supplements. Teens tend to deny their mortality and take risks that more mature people wouldn’t consider. Here are some situations in which teen athletes might consider taking performance-enhancing drugs. So what can we do to help? Love and support your teen and have a sense of mortality.
Sep
29
Alcohol Addiction
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Alcohol addiction is a major issue in our world today. Alcohol addiction can be influenced by a number of factors. Most people use alcohol socially to change how they feel because they want to feel better or different. They use alcohol for t he benefits or the benefits experienced not for the potential harm. People use alcohol to relax, have fun, to be part of a group, out of curiosity, and to escape from physical and psychological pain. Many of the reasons young people use alcohol are the same reasons adults use alcohol. What causes alcohol addiction? Many factors influence a person’s initial alcohol use. Personality characteristics, peer pressure, and psychological stress can all contribute to the early stage of alcohol abuse. School and job performance may suffer either from the after effects of drinking or from actual intoxication on the job or at school; child care or household responsibilities may be neglected, and alcohol-related absences may occur from school or job. The person may use alcohol in physically hazardous circumstances like driving automobile or operating machinery while drunk. Large doses of alcohol invade the body’s fluids and interfere with metabolism in every cell. Alcohol damages the liver, the central nervous system, the gastrointestinal tract, and the heart. Alcoholics who do not quit drinking decrease life expectancy by 10 to 15 years. Persons suffering with alcohol abuse finally grow obsessed with alcohol to the exclusion of almost everything else. The late-stage alcoholic suffers a host of fears, including fear of crowds and public places. Constant remorse and guilt is more built with more drinking.
Sep
22
Marijuana
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Marijuana is a green or gray mixture of dried, shredded flowers and leaves of the hemp plant called Cannabis sativa. It is employed often illegal drug in this country. All shapes of cannabis are drugs mind-altering which contain THC, the active chemical in marijuana. There are approximately 400 chemicals with a factory of cannabis, but THC is that which affects the brain more. There are many various names for the marijuana. The limits of slang for drugs change quickly, and they vary on the one hand country with the other. Most users roll loose marijuana into a cigarette, called a “joint”. The drug can also be smoked in a water pipe, called a “bong.” Some users mix marijuana into foods or use it to brew a tea. Lately, young people have a new method for smoking marijuana: they slice open cigars and replace the tobacco with marijuana, making what’s called a “blunt.” The most commonly reported effects of smoked marijuana are a sense of well-being or euphoria and increased talkativeness and laughter, alternating with periods of dreaminess, followed by sleepiness. THC is the chemicals in marijuana which does you the feeling high. Certain parts of the plant contain higher levels of THC. The flowers or buds have more THC than the stems or the sheets. Studies show that 6 to 11 percent of fatal accidents are contributed to by marijuana side effects. Over 11 million people smoked marijuana last month. Many may not have severe marijuana side effects from taking the drug but many people will.
