Facts on some mood-altering drugs:
All mood-altering drugs, including alcohol, distract the user from outside reality or the reality inside themselves. Being distracted from outside reality means that judgement is impaired, and people who are drunk or high are more prone to dangers like road accidents or making bad decisions. The reality inside people refers to their emotions, and drugs or alcohol numb emotions in such a way that it makes it hard for these people to face life in a mature way. Mixing substances together makes them more dangerous. Drugs bought on the street are sometimes mixed with poisonous substances or are stronger than one realises, which can lead to poisoning or an overdose. When pregnant, any substance taken by the mother is passed on to the developing foetus, and can cause damage.
Alcohol
booze, liquor, dop
The chemical name for alcohol is ethanol. Beer, wine and spirits contain alcohol in increasing concentrations. Although alcohol is legal it is illegal for minors below the age of 18 years to buy or be sold alcohol in South Africa. It is a socially acceptable drug and is therefore the most commonly consumed drug in South Africa. However, for this reason it also causes more harm than all other substances put together. When consumed, alcohol is absorbed into the bloodstream and then into the brain where its effects last up to several hours. In small amounts it produces feelings of pleasure and relaxation.
Negative effects: Because alcohol decreases inhibitions and impairs judgement, people are more likely to get reckless or violent when drunk. Its after-effects include feeling hungover and depressed. Alcohol is addictive for those who use it very often, and if abused heavily can cause both mental and physical damage such as liver disease, stomach ulcers, memory loss and weakness. Drinking alcohol during pregnancy can cause irreversible brain and other damage to the developing baby.
Marijuana
dagga, pot, weed, grass, ganja, dope, zol, hash
Marijuana comes from the cannabis plant, and is taken from the dried leaves or buds of the plant. The active ingredient is a chemical called THC. It is usually mixed with a small amount of tobacco and smoked, but is occasionally eaten. It produces a mild, relaxed ”high” along with a feeling that one is more sensitive to one’s environment.
Negative effects: Sometimes it causes very unpleasant effects including fear and panic. Marijuana is a mildly addictive drug, and with heavy use can lead to concentration and memory loss, impairment of motivation, and sometimes paranoia and delusions. It may be a gateway to other drugs. Not everyone who smokes grass tries stronger drugs, but almost all users of heavier drugs first used marijuana. Long term use leads to lung problems because of the thickness of the smoke and the way it is deeply inhaled.
Nicotine
We tend to forget the drug nicotine, the active chemical in tobacco, which we smoke in cigarettes. It is a mild stimulant.
Negative effects: Nicotine is addictive, and the younger one starts to smoke, the harder it is to quit. Short term problems include more allergies, colds and chest complaints in smokers. After years of smoking there is a risk of lung disease, throat, lung and other cancers. Even non-smokers and children exposed to cigarette smoke from others are at risk. Unborn babies of mother who are smokers are smaller and have more health problems.
Glue
Glue is a cheap way to get a high similar to alcohol, and for this reason street kids often sniff it, with terrible consequences. The high is caused by a chemical in the glue called a solvent. The glue is usually poured into a small container and the fumes are then inhaled through the mouth. The high is brief, lasting a few minutes, and users must keep on inhaling it to remain high.
Negative effects: The solvent in glue dissolves the lining of nerves in the brain and body. With use over a few weeks or longer, irreversible brain damage may occur so that the person cannot learn or remember properly, and may experience paranoia or delusions. It can also damage nerves in other parts of the body, causing weakness and numbness.
Mandrax
buttons, white pipes
Mandrax is an illegal sleeping pill that is crushed and smoked with marijuana. It causes a rapid feeling of intoxication, a ”rush”, which lasts a few minutes followed by a sleepy sensation.
Negative effects: Mandrax is highly addictive. The hot smoke when burnt contains a number of chemicals that are harmful to the lungs, and over time causes severe lung disease. It is a depressant leading to loss of motivation, physical deterioration and weight loss.
Cocaine and crack
coke, white, powder, snow, rocks, schnarf
Cocaine reaches the streets as white powder that is sniffed. It is often cut with talcum powder, milk powder or far more toxic substances. Crack or ”rocks” are made by heating cocaine with bicarbonate of soda. The rock is smoked in a glass pipe, on metal gauze. Cocaine stimulates the brain causing a feeling of pleasure and excitement, and when smoked as crack causes a brief powerful mental rush.
Negative effects: Cocaine and crack are extremely mentally addictive, and lead to self-neglect and loss of interest in everything except getting more cocaine. Because it stimulates the brain, it leads to exhaustion and depression when it wears off. It often causes anxiety and paranoia, and heavy users may become psychotic. It causes a rapid rise in blood pressure and heart rate, which can lead to stroke and heart attack. Sniffing cocaine regularly can destroy the lining of the nose.
Ecstasy (”E”, MDMA)
Ecstasy is a pill containing a chemical called MDMA, which has both stimulant and hallucinogenic properties. It is a commonly used ”rave” drug, and causes feelings of emotional warmth, enhanced sensory pleasure and energy.
Negative effects: Ecstasy raises the body temperature of the user, which can lead to dehydration and collapse. There is often a ”come-down” effect two days after use in which the user feels depressed and low in energy. Research has shown that repeated use is toxic to certain brain cells and can impair concentration, memory and learning. This is particularly worrying considering that the brains of teenagers, who most commonly use the drug, are still developing.
Heroin
”h”, brown sugar, horse, smack, gear
Heroin is an opiate, derived from the opium poppy. It is a strong painkiller, and produces a feeling of physical pleasure, euphoria, sleepiness and detachment. It can be sniffed, smoked or injected.
Negative effects: It is highly physically addictive. Regular use for more than a week is enough to produce addiction. Once addicted the user needs more heroin just to feel okay, otherwise very unpleasant withdrawal symptoms like body cramps, sweating and diarrhoea occur and it becomes very difficult to stop. Those who inject the drug expose themselves to the risk of infection through needles, including AIDS. There is always a strong risk of overdose because the user never knows the strength of heroin, which decreases breathing. Heroin leads to demotivation and social isolation.
Sleeping pills and tranquilisers
These are legal drugs prescribed by doctors, and can be helpful for people who cannot sleep or who experience anxiety. They depress brain activity and cause sleepiness. When abused they cause a drunken relaxed feeling similar to alcohol.
Negative effects: When mixed with other substances such as alcohol, an additive effect occurs that may be dangerous. These drugs are addictive when used often or in higher doses then advised by a doctor. They can produce emotional depression and withdrawal, and over a long period of time can be toxic to certain brain areas.
LSD
trips, acid, microdots
LSD is a part of a powerful group of drugs called ”hallucinogens”, though it seldom causes true hallucinations. It causes a state of sensory enhancement and super-sensitivity, and while high the user experiences the feeling that time and the world around are altered.
Negative effects: While high, certain sensitive people may find the effects terrifying, and can experience a nightmarish ”trip” that lasts a few hours, leading to unpleasant after-effects. It doesn’t cause mental illness but can bring out mental illness in people who have that tendency. Sometimes LSD contains small amounts of toxins such as the poison strychnine.
— The Teacher/Mail & Guardian, June 5, 2000.
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