The Effects of Drug Use

1
The Effects of Drug Use
2
Ecstasy
3
BBC NewsMonday, 18 December, 2000, Ecstasy brain
damage link     http//news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health
/1076381.stm   Evidence is mounting that regular
use of the drug Ecstasy may cause long-term brain
changes. Studies in monkeys have already
suggested that the drug is toxic to the neurons
in the brain, but human evidence has been mainly
anecdotal.
4
All were subjected to tests involving the supply
- or lack - of tryptophan, a chemical which is
key to the production of seratonin, another
chemical known to have profound effects on mood
and memory. It was the ex-users who stood out
in the tests, performing much worse when they
were deprived of the chemical, and much better
when it was given.
5
Professor Curran told BBC News Online "When
combined with the animal studies, the evidence is
certainly growing that there are long-lasting
effects. "We know it has these effects on the
brains of monkeys, and human brains are not that
different. "It's certainly a worrying finding."

6
Medical News TodayArticle Date 06 Aug 2005 -
000 PST Drug addiction - Death by
Ecstasy http//www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalne
ws.php?newsid28694   Scientists have
identified a key protein involved in one of the
most lethal side effects of the popular but
illegal drug ecstasy. Most ecstasy-related
deaths are caused by an increase in body
temperature, or hyperthermia, which leads to
organ failure.
7
Coroners report 18-year-old female who attended
a RAVE PARTY between the hours of 2230 and 0230
hours at a vacant lot.
Mother of decedent picked her up at which time
the decedent appeared to be under the influence.
Mother drove straight to Good Samaritan Hospital
where decedent told staff that she had taken 3
Ecstasy pills at the party.  
8
Decedent kept in ER and monitored until about
0800 when she was released with doctor telling
the mother that she would probably sleep for 18
hours and wake up with a headache. Decedent
unable to get to car on her own and seemed to
sleep the entire trip home to Sylmar. Decedent
put to bed and checked on every 30 minutes or so
by family. When checked on at about 1600 hours
she was found not breathing so family called 911.
Decedent taken to Olive View Hospital where she
was declared dead in the ER at 1701 hours.
9
In this story the young girl died after being
sent home from the hospital. The doctors failed
to realize the actual lasting effects of ecstasy
and thus were unable to help this girl. If our
own doctors don't even know how to handle a drug
like ecstasy, just imagine the state of affairs
our youth are in. They need the correct knowledge
in order to make the right decisions.
10
, often the drug has other things added into it.
Things like rat poison, sedatives and other
chemical combinations. While it is the drug
ecstasy itself that does the most damage,
nowadays kids don't know what they are taking.
11
About 8 of high school seniors surveyed had
tried Ecstasy at least once in their lives.
About 5.5 of 19-22 year-olds surveyed had
used Ecstasy in the previous year.
Ecstasy-related emergency room incidents
increased nationwide from 250 in 1994, to 637 in
1997, to 1,142 in 1998, to 2,850 in 1999.
12
Links Human psychopharmacology of Ecstasy (MDMA)
a review of 15 years of empirical research by
Parrott AC. Department of Psychology, University
of East London, UK. http//www.mdma.net/toxicity
/damage.html  
Abstinent regular Ecstasy users often display
reduced levels of 5-HT, 5-HIAA, tryptophan
hydroxylase and serotonin transporter density
functional deficits in learning/memory, higher
cognitive processing, sleep, appetite and
psychiatric well-being, and, most paradoxically,
'loss of sexual interest/pleasure'. These
psychobiological deficits are greatest in heavy
Ecstasy users and may reflect serotonergic axonal
loss in the higher brain regions, especially the
frontal lobes, temporal lobes and hippocampus.
These problems seem to remain long after the
recreational use of Ecstasy has ceased,
suggesting that the neuropharmacological damage
may be permament.
13
Ecstasy Effects http//www.ecstasy-effects.com/
Ecstasy, a street name given for the chemical
MDMA, is a synthetic, psychoactive , neurotoxic
drug with many negative effects. Ecstasy has
similar structure to stimulants, like cocaine,
and hallucinogenics like LSD. Here are a few
negative effects that may come as quickly as
the first dose and increase with continued usage.
14
Confusion Sleep problems Anxiety Teeth clenching
Blurred vision Acne like rash Brain
damage Depression Addiction Paranoia Nausea Chil
ls and sweating Liver damage Aggression
15
In addition to these consequences, impaired
memory and long term reduction of serotonin and
dopamine can disrupt normal brain activity in the
ecstasy user and cause learning disorders and
emotional problems.. Erratic mood swings and
depression can lead to isolation from friends and
family that do not use. Often decreased
performance on the job or in school occurs from
ecstasy abuse and financial problems increase as
well.
16
The above brain scans show the amount of
serotonin activity over a 40-minute period in a
non ECSTASY user. Note the white color within
the brain scans, indicative of serotonin
activity. Consider the following scan of
ECSTASY users.
17
The above is are brain scans of an ECSTASY user.
Dark areas in the MDMA (ECSTASY) user's brain
show damage due to chronic MDMA use. Note how
little serotonin activity there is compared to
the non user
18
Non User
User
19
Low levels of serotonin have been associated with
several disorders, notably clinical depression,
bipolar disorder, and anxiety disorders.
In short, psychiatric disorders
20
Leah Betts (November 11, 1977 - November 16,
1995) was a schoolgirl from Latchingdon in Essex,
England. She is notable for the extensive media
coverage that followed her death several days
after her 18th birthday, on November 11, during
which she took an Ecstasy tablet, then collapsed
four hours later into a coma, from which she did
not recover.
21
Cathy Isford was on the verge of realizing her
dreams.  About to graduate from high school,
serving as a teacher's aide to help achieve her
goal of a career in teaching, and caught up in
the excitement of planning her wedding.
22
She and her fiancée had given up raves and party
drugs because one night, when they left a rave
party they noticed a line of ambulances outside,
waiting to rush drug victims to medical
attention.  For two years, she stayed away from
anything unhealthy.  But then, as her senior prom
approached, against the wishes of her fiancée and
friends, she decided to take Ecstasy one more
time for prom. 
23
She was one of 38 prom-goers that night to take
Ecstasy.  The other 37 woke up the next morning
to celebrate a new day.  Not Cathy.  Her desire
to make her prom special by taking designer drugs
sunk her into a coma four hours after she took
the drug.  She never regained consciousness. 
With her family, fiancé and friends at her side,
she fought to survive, but by the second day she
was declared brain dead, and there was nothing
anyone could do but mourn.  She was buried in her
prom dress.   
24
Ketamine (Special K, or K)
25
http//www.voiceofthevictims.com/druginformation.h
tm
Ketamine (K, Special K, Vitamin K) was developed
in the 1960s.  It is used as an animal
tranquilizer by veterinarians and as anesthetic
by physicians.  In the late 1970s, Ketamine
emerged as a recreational drug.  Today, it has
resurfaced on the rave scene and is popular with
both teens and young adults.  It is a strong
hallucinogenic drug that impairs perceptions,
increases feelings of euphoria and distorts
users' sense of time and place.
26
http//www.dancesafe.org/documents/druginfo/ketami
ne.php
Ketamine belongs to a class of drugs called
"dissociative anaesthetics," which separate
perception from sensation. Other drugs in this
category include PCP, and DXM.
Ketamine usually comes as a liquid in small
pharmaceutical bottles, and is most often cooked
into a white powder for snorting.
27
WHAT ARE THE EFFECTS?
28
At lower doses it has a mild, dreamy feeling
similar to nitrous oxide (laughing gas). Users
report feeling floaty and slightly outside their
body. Numbness in the extremities is also common.
Higher doses produce a hallucinogenic (trippy)
effect, and may cause the user to feel very far
away from their body. This experience is often
referred to as entering a "K-hole" and has been
compared to a near death experience with
sensations of rising above one's body. While in
a K-hole it is very difficult to move. People
usually remain seated or lying down during the
experience.
29
http//www.voiceofthevictims.com/aboutketamine.htm
Along with GHB, Ketamine has long been a drug of
choice for rapists.  It dissolves in any liquid
and can be slipped into an unsuspecting victim's
drink, after which he or she could be unconscious
for hours.
30
http//leda.lycaeum.org/?ID9299
Brain Damage
Dissociatives definitely cause brain damage if
used heavily. One sub-anaesthetic "line dose" of
ketamine is probably at least as damaging to your
brain as a few day "bender" on hard liquor, and
possibly more so because it affects specific
areas of the brain.
31
The risk of brain damage is worse the longer you
stay high at any given time constant
moderate-dose use is probably just as damaging as
a brief, high-dose use.
32
Reaching the anaesthetic level is exceedingly
hard on your brain.
In addition to brain damage, these drugs can also
trigger psychosis, limbic seizures, temporal
lability, depression, and other neurological and
psychological diseases much more frequently than
other types of drugs.
33
People who have used dissociatives heavily have
shown clear evidence of brain damage. one
cannot ignore the fact that most everyone who
uses dissociatives both frequently and heavily
ends up with some sort of neurological or
psychological problem, ranging from impaired
memory to a schizophrenia-like syndrome. Many of
the impairments correspond exactly to the areas
of the brain damaged in lab animals.
34

• Ketamine can cause extreme physical and mental
  problems including delirium and amnesia.
• It can have irreversible effects on the human
  motor system, impairing a person's ability to
  walk and perform simple tasks.

35
http//www.cathysprom.com/designer_drugs.htm
Taking Ketamine just one time can cause fatal
respiratory problems and severe brain damage. 
Erin Rose's heart stopped for 18 minutes, leaving
her with the mental capacity of a young child,
impaired speech and damaged motor skills. 
Through months of rehabilitation, she is finally
able to walk and talk again.  Ketamine can be
mixed with other street drugs, intensifying the
dangerous nature of its effects.  Ketamine, which
comes in a powder form, can be sprinkled on
tobacco or marijuana or mixed with other powerful
drugs like LSD or speed (Methamphetamines).
36
DXM
Dextromethorphan (DXM) is a hallucinogen most
closely associated with ketamine and PCP. Unlike
any other hallucinogen, DXM has different levels
of effects, known as plateaus with different
effects that range from the drunk and stoned
feeling of the first plateau to complete
body/mind disillusion and hallucination of the
fourth plateau. The risks of injury or death from
DXM raise with the levels of usage, making DXM a
very dangerous drug.
37
The risks   Nausea, itchy skin, hallucinations,
disorientation, and loss of motor skills are the
primary risks from DXM Even with a small dose,
DXM impairs a users motor skills, at higher
doses it causes the user to be completely
immobile, making it a popular choice with
rapists.
38
Like ecstasy, DXM impairs the bodys ability to
control its temperature, DXM use can result in
heatstroke, this risk is greatly increased when
mixed with ecstasy.   Permanent serious brain
damage can occur from DXM including impaired
memory, control of your behavior, learning,
visual perception, and multi-sensory thinking as
well as other permanent damage including
psychosis, limbic seizures, temporal lability and
depression. DXM can result in coma or death.  
39
Crystal Meth
Methamphetamine (crystal meth) is a
psychostimulant drug used primarily for
recreational purposes. It causes euphoria and
excitement by acting directly on the brain's
reward mechanisms, thus making it highly
addictive. Methamphetamine rapidly enters the
brain and causes a cascading release of
norepinephrine and dopamine (and to a lesser
extent, serotonin). Users may become obsessed or
perform repetitive tasks such as cleaning,
hand-washing or assembling and disassembling
objects. Withdrawal is characterized by
increased sleeping and eating, and
depression-like symptoms, often accompanied by
anxiety and drug-craving.
40
(No Transcript)
41
(No Transcript)
42
The Faces of Meth
43
(No Transcript)
44
(No Transcript)
45
(No Transcript)
46
(No Transcript)
47
(No Transcript)
48
(No Transcript)
49
Marijuana
50
http//www.marijuanaaddiction.info/effects-of-mari
juana.htm
Effects of Marijuana on the Brain Researchers
have found that THC changes the way in which
sensory information gets into and is acted on by
the hippocampus. This is a component of the
brain's limbic system that is crucial for
learning, memory, and the integration of sensory
experiences with emotions and motivations.
Investigations have shown that neurons in the
information processing system of the hippocampus
and the activity of the nerve fibers are
suppressed by THC. In addition, researchers have
discovered that learned behaviors, which depend
on the hippocampus, also deteriorate. Recent
research findings also indicate that long-term
use of marijuana produces changes in the brain
similar to those seen after long-term use of
other major drugs of abuse.
51
The Psychological Effects of Marijuana

• Erodes logical thinking.
• Hallucination
• Loss of Ambition
• Personality Arrest

Lets consider each one individually.
52

• Erodes logical thinking.
• All XYT is M
• WX is M
• Therefore, WX is XYT
• All Chickens are born from eggs.
• All Turkeys are born from eggs.
• Therefore, all Turkeys are Chickens.
• Invalid reasoning. Bad logic.

53
Hallucination
Auditory hallucinations can range from primitive
noises such as bangs, whistles, claps, screams,
ticks, and others to speech and music. Commonly
people who have auditory hallucinations hear
voices which utter short comprehensible phrases.
Sometimes the person may recognize the voice as
one of a family member or deceased friend and
sometimes it may be the voice of a stranger or
even God. The voices or sounds can be thought to
originate from anywhere. The walls, the ground,
trees, a shoe are all possible origins of
hallucinatory sounds.
54
Loss of Ambition
One becomes disenchanted with life. Bored
easily. Would rather sit around and get high.
Loss of desire to achieve.
55
Personality Arrest
Otherwise known as emotional retardation. One
remains the psychological age at which one
started to use. 43 year old user is 15 years old
emotionally and psychologically.
As non users develop emotionally
The user suffers arrested emotional development