EFFECTS OF SUBSTANCE ABUSE

• Substance Abuse - refers to the harmful or hazardous use of psychoactive substances, including alcohol and illicit drugs. Psychoactive substance use can lead to dependence syndrome - a cluster of behavioural, cognitive, and physiological phenomena that develop after repeated substance use and that typically include a strong desire to take the drug, difficulties in controlling its use, persisting in its use despite harmful consequences, a higher priority given to drug use than to other activities and obligations, increased tolerance, and sometimes a physical withdrawal state. 

The substance abuse results in physical, psychological, emotional harm to the user or others.

Substance abuse is rare before the teenage years.

Most frequently abused substances include:

• alcohol
• tobacco
• marijuana
• hashish
• over-the-counter drugs such as dextromethorphan and pseudoephedrine
• benzodiazepines like Ativan and Valium
• stimulants: methamphetamine or cocaine
• club drugs: Ecstasy, ketamine, MDA, or Rohypnol
• hallucinogens: LSD, mushrooms
• inhalants: glue, lighter fluid, gasoline, or paint thinner
• narcotic painkillers: codeine and morphine​

What is the “substance” in substance abuse?

Substance typically refers to the pathological use of a medication or non-medically indicated drug or toxin, which results in repeated adverse social consequences. The National Institute on Drug Abuselists the following substances as possible agents for abuse:

Alcohol Club Drugs Cocaine Heroin Inhalants LSD (Acid) Marijuana

MDMA (Ecstasy) Methamphetamine PCP/Phencyclidine Prescription Medications Steroids (Anabolic) Tobacco Addiction

• Signs and symptoms 

Your teenager may try to hide his substance abuse from you. But there are some signs and behaviours that may indicate your child is using drugs, chemicals, or alcohol. These signs are most often noticed as a change in your child's typical behaviour towards school, family, and friends. Areas where a change in behaviour are most noticeable may include:

Changed attitude or success in school

Drug abuse may be occuring if your child:

• starts missing more classes than usual without a good reason
• seems to care less about marks or school activities
• has an unexplained drop in grades

Behavioural changes

Teenagers like to be independent. They need their privacy. However, if your child shows any of the following signs, he could be hiding a drug or alcohol problem:

• major change in behaviour
• major change in how he interacts with family members
• preventing family members from knowing about their friends or where they are going

Change in the need for cash

Another sign of substance abuse is the unexplained need for extra cash. Your child might not be able to explain where he is spending the money. You may notice cash missing from home or valuable items disappearing.

Change in self-care and appearance

Normally, teenagers are very concerned with the way they look. They strive to look their best. If your child lacks interest in clothing, hygiene, grooming, or looks, this may be a sign of substance abuse.

Change in level of energy

There may be a change in your child’s general health. Some signs include:

• poor energy levels
• getting too much or too little sleep
• decrease in motivation

Physical signs and symptoms

Physical signs and symptoms depend on the drug your child may be abusing. For example, if your child is abusing marijuana or hashish, you may notice the following symptoms:

• delayed reaction time
• red eyes
• poor concentration and memory
• increased appetite
• paranoid thinking (also a sign of mental health disease)

Speak to your doctor for signs and symptoms associated with other drugs.

Causes of substance Use and Abuse

Substance abuse can have many causes. For most teenagers, curiosity and peer pressure leads to their first drug experience. It is natural for teenagers like to engage in risky behaviour. They do it for excitement or to fit in with their peers.

Some teenagers find that marijuana or other drugs can help relieve anxiety or depression, which is known as 'self-medication'. Other drugs like Ecstacy or cocaine offer a jolt of energy and heightened sensation. They may offer a short-term escape from conflicts in life. Substance abuse can occur when teenagers use drugs, a coping strategy to deal with their emotional problems.

Being around family members or peers that encourage drug use may influence your child’s substance abuse. Many studies show that once your child starts using a drugs, genetic factors may influence whether they develop an addiction.

Complications

Substance abuse can have long-term physical and psychological effects. The complications vary depending on the substance abused.

The effects of substance abuse can be felt on many levels: on the individual, on friends and family, and on society.

On the Individual

People who use drugs experience a wide array of physical effects other than those expected. The excitement of a cocaine high, for instance, is followed by a "crash": a period of anxiety, fatigue, depression, and an acute desire for more cocaine to alleviate the feelings of the crash. Marijuana and alcohol interfere with motor control and are factors in many automobile accidents. Users of marijuana and hallucinogenic drugs may experience flashbacks, unwanted recurrences of the drug's effects weeks or months after use. Sudden abstinence from certain drugs results in withdrawal symptoms. For example, heroin withdrawal can cause vomiting, muscle cramps, convulsions, and delirium. With the continued use of a physically addictive drug, tolerance develops; i.e., constantly increasing amounts of the drug are needed to duplicate the initial effect. Sharing hypodermic needles used to inject some drugs dramatically increases the risk of contracting AIDS and some types of hepatitis. In addition, increased sexual activity among drug users, both in prostitution and from the dis-inhibiting effect of some drugs, also puts them at a higher risk of AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. Because the purity and dosage of illegal drugs are uncontrolled, drug overdose is a constant risk. There are over 10,000 deaths directly attributable to drug use in the United States every year; the substances most frequently involved are cocaine, heroin, and morphine, often combined with alcohol or other drugs. Many drug users engage in criminal activity, such as burglary and prostitution, to raise the money to buy drugs, and some drugs, especially alcohol, are associated with violent behavior.

Effects on the Family

The user's preoccupation with the substance, plus its effects on mood and performance, can lead to marital problems and poor work performance or dismissal. Drug use can disrupt family life and create destructive patterns of codependency, that is, the spouse or whole family, out of love or fear of consequences, inadvertently enables the user to continue using drugs by covering up, supplying money, or denying there is a problem. Pregnant drug users, because of the drugs themselves or poor self-care in general, bear a much higher rate of low birth-weight babies than the average. Many drugs (e.g., crack and heroin) cross the placental barrier, resulting in addicted babies who go through withdrawal soon after birth, and fetal alcohol syndrome can affect children of mothers who consume alcohol during pregnancy. Pregnant women who acquire the AIDS virus through intravenous drug use pass the virus to their infant.

Effects on Society

Drug abuse affects society in many ways. In the workplace it is costly in terms of lost work time and inefficiency. Drug users are more likely than nonusers to have occupational accidents, endangering themselves and those around them. Over half of the highway deaths in the United States involve alcohol. Drug-related crime can disrupt neighborhoods due to violence among drug dealers, threats to residents, and the crimes of the addicts themselves. In some neighborhoods, younger children are recruited as lookouts and helpers because of the lighter sentences given to juvenile offenders, and guns have become commonplace among children and adolescents. The great majority of homeless people have either a drug or alcohol problem or a mental illness—many have all three.

PREVENTION:

Most children will be offered drugs, alcohol, or chemicals at some point in their lives. More than two-thirds of high school students in Ontario used alcohol at least once over the previous year. One-third used marijuana or hashish over the previous year.

Alcohol and drugs can make teenagers less inhibited. They may be more likely to engage in risky behaviour or have unprotected sex. For these reasons, the best prevention for substance abuse is as follows:

Talk to your teen

Tell your children about the physical, psychological, and social harms of drug, alcohol, and chemical abuse.

Be a good listener

When your children share their fears and experiences, be a patient listener. Try not to judge. Encourage your child to resist substance abuse. Brainstorm ways they can “say no” to drugs.

Be a role model

Be a responsible parent. Do not abuse drugs or alcohol. When you drink alcohol, do not drink too much. Children of parents who smoke or abuse drugs are more likely to become addicted to cigarettes or drugs.

Spend time with your children

If you and your child have a secure relationship, your child is less likely to abuse drugs.

PRACTICAL APPLICATION:

Like many college students, Jeremy likes to go out with his friends and drink alcohol. They have a good time, and everyone knows that Jeremy's always up for a party. But a few of the people closest to him have started worrying that perhaps he has a drinking problem. Are they right? Is Jeremy addicted? Or, is he just having a good time like other college students?

Substance abuse, meanwhile, is when a person consumes alcohol or drugs regularly, despite the fact that it causes issues in their life. The issues caused by abuse may be related to their job, their personal life, or even their safety. People who abuse drugs and alcohol continue to consume them, regardless of the consequences. Last month, Jeremy's girlfriend threatened to break up with him because he drank too much and was mean to her when he did. Instead of using that as a warning sign, he kept drinking and lost his girlfriend. This is an example of substance abuse: He continues to drink, even though there are consequences.







REFERENCES:

http://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/science/drug-addiction-drug-abuse-effects-substance-abuse.html

http://www.aboutkidshealth.ca/en/healthaz/conditionsanddiseases/behaviouralandemotionalproblems/pages/substanceabuse.aspx

https://ncadd.org/for-youth/prevention-tips
http://www.who.int/topics/substance_abuse/en/
http://study.com/academy/lesson/substance-use-abuse-and-dependence-definition-and-causes-of-substance-disorders.html