...I Population Defined This paper will cover briefly a multidimensional analysis of pregnant women and cocaine use. This paper will explore how women, particularly pregnant women can be challenged by cocaine use. There will be A review of the literature and policies that impact this population. In history, women have been making strides against oppression and discrimination in health, social welfare, policy and many other areas of life (Eisenberg,1998). For purposes of this paper, inner urban cities will be discussed as it impacts pregnant women. To date, gender and issues of equality remain at the forefront. Advocacy organizations like Planned Parenthood, advocate for reproductive health care for women. Certain cultural practices, prohibit...
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...head: DRUG PROFILE PAPER Drug Profile Paper Sherita Brown Axia College of UOP Drug Profile Paper In this paper I will examine abused substances and their various effects; I will also explain the psychology and Physiology of drug addiction. Addiction begins as a high, as an illusion of being in control, but it eventually turns on the individual. The results are pathological relationships to a mood altering experience that brings negative, life destructive consequences. People become addicted to drugs due to a combination of factors. For example, genetic factors: some people may inherit a vulnerability to the addictive properties of drugs, meaning that the risk of substance use disorders is higher for individuals who have close relatives with substance abuse disorders (www.drugpolicy.org). The environment is another factor, for example, the home; neighborhood or community where people live has an influence on whether or not an individual develops a substance abuse problem. Additionally, research shows that more than half of people with substance problems also have mental health issues such as anxiety or depression. We can become addicted to anything that alters the consciousness and alters the mood. Psychological characteristics of an addict are more impulsive and more lacking in impulse control, they are inclined to act in accordance with their mood of the moment and tend not to plan for the future. The most common illegal stimulant is cocaine and amphetamines;...
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...The Outside Drug: Cocaine in the US Page Break Michael Moss once said, “Some of the largest companies are now using brain scans to study how we react neurologically to certain foods, especially to sugar. They've discovered that the brain lights up for sugar the same way it does for cocaine.” Cocaine is a common party drug for young adults and a severely addictive drug for offenders. America’s battle with substance abuse has yet to calm down, it is important for people to recognize the power of the correct treatment and the lack of the treatment in the American society. For years, people have searched for way to stop cocaine from getting into America meanwhile, they have yet to find out how to treat the ones who already use the drugs. It is important to understand the approvals and disapprovals that cocaine had throughout the decades of being in America....
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...Psychology 9/16/15 Prof. Becofsky Three Well-Thought-Out Paper Ideas 1. How did cocaine become so popular in America as well as its direct effect to brain function? Cocaine has been a major drug in the United States since the mid 1970s and it has gotten even popular this day in age. I’ve always been curious to as why cocaine addicts are addicted to cocaine. Why can’t they just stop? Why do they start in the first place? No one just wakes up in the morning and says, “I’m going to be a cocaine addict today.” I want to see the affects cocaine has on the brain that make this drug such a popular and dependable stimulant. In my research paper I will answer these questions and go in depth with what cocaine does to the brain as well as the history of cocaine abuse in the United States. I will show examples of cocaine use as well as the health hazards associated with this stimulate and what exactly happens in the brain with these individuals. 2. Schizophrenia such a dangerous/critical mental illness for the lives of children? Schizophrenia has always been a major topic when talking about psychological/mental illnesses. I’ve always been curious in learning about Schizophrenia and how someone starts showing the symptoms for this particular illness. I took a psychology course in high school and we went into depth with Schizophrenia so I am pretty aware of this situation. In my research paper I will explain and go into depth with what exactly schizophrenia really...
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...According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse about six million people over the age 12 have used cocaine at least once in the past year.” Our text book stated : “Cocaine is one of the most dangerous drugs available to teenagers and along with the amphetamines are powerful psychostimulant that markedly affect mental functioning and behavior. These drugs augment the action of several neurotransmitters, the most important is dopamine. “( text book) Cocaine is a purified extract from the leaves of the Erythroxylum coca bush. Different chemical processes produce the two main forms of cocaine: Powdered cocaine: commonly known on the street as “coke” or “blow” dissolves in water. Users can snort or inject powdered cocaine .Crack cocaine: commonly known on the street as “crack: or “ rock” is made by chemical process that leaves it in its “freebase” form, which can be smoked. One of the most risky effects of teenage cocaine use is that the body can develop a tolerance to the drug, and the user needs increasingly larger doses of the drug to achieve the same feeling. This can increase the chance of an overdose, as the user takes successively greater amounts of cocaine in an effort to get high. In certain cases, first time users of cocaine have suffered from sudden death, the possibility of which dramatically increases when alcohol is simultaneously consumed. The objective of this paper is to discuss the symptom of the abuse in teenagers, the degree that the substance...
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...beverages such as tea, coffee, and cola are drugs. However this paper focuses on drugs that are abused by teenagers. Surveys show that cocaine, marijuana, heroin, and inhalants are the most commonly used drugs among teenagers age thirteen through eighteen. One of the most startling findings from recent data is the degree to which to which teenagers are now involved in drug use. This drug abuse problem has gotten worse. Perhaps our society must hit “rock bottom” before changes can occur. According to the Michigan Institute for Social research, reported the results of their 1992 and 1993 national survey of nearly fifty thousand American high school students across the country ages thirteen through eighteen. Studies show that a gradual decrease in the use of most illicit drugs by younger people. The peak year for illicit drug use by high school seniors was in 1980. The 1992 and 1993 surveys reported an alarming shift, a modest but statistically significant increase in the use of several drugs such as cocaine, marijuana, heroin, and inhalants. This survey attributes the increase in drug use to students’ perceived risk or danger in using a particular drug. In 1992, thirteen year-olds were less likely to see cocaine, crack and marijuana as dangerous. But in 1993, there was a significant increase in marijuana use by seventeen and eighteen year olds and a significant increase in marijuana use by thirteen year-old students. Cocaine use by seventeen and eighteen year olds declined in 1992...
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...these drugs, and the ways that they are being introduced into the American market and juveniles are profiting from it, as well as researching the pharmacology, psychology, sociology, treatment, and the business of drugs. Then I will be finalizing my research with ways to prevent juveniles from becoming addicted to these types of drugs and who to further education juveniles about the dangers and harms of drug use. Researchers have determined that “youngsters who have conduct problems are more likely than others to be exposed to illicit drugs” (Abadinsky: 21). Most juveniles who have emotional and behavioral problems are more than likely to start abusing alcohol, tobacco, and illicit drugs, according to a study done by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). The study done by the (SAMHSA) also found that juveniles were inclined toward substance abuse admitted to delinquent behavior such as stealing, cutting classes or skipping school, and hanging out with other juveniles who get in to trouble as well. The study also reported poor peer and parental relations and such problems made it difficult for the juveniles to focus in school, task at home, part-time work, and even while playing sports. Cocaine is a psychostimulant which acts by blocking the reuptake of dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin in the mesolimbic pathway and...
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...Impact and Relationship of Substance Abuse and Child Maltreatment: Risk and Resiliency Factors What Research Tells Us Martha Morrison Dore, Ph.D. Columbia University School of Social Work 622 West 113th Street New York, New York 10027 212/854-5461 Paper prepared for presentation at the conference entitled “Protecting Children in Substance Abusing Families,” September 28, 1998, sponsored by the Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare, University of Minnesota School of Social Work, Minneapolis, MN. Researchers are just beginning to demonstrate empirically what child protective services workers have been observing for nearly two decades now: many, if not most, families who come to the attention of the child welfare system are involved with drugs or alcohol or both. Founded cases of child abuse and neglect have risen exponentially since the mid-1980s, when the crack form of cocaine, a cheap, easily used form of the drug, became widely available. Studies conducted since that time have identified substance abuse as a contributing factor in 40% to 80% of substantiated cases of child maltreatment (Curtis & McCullough, 1993; Magura & Laudet, 1996; Murphy, Jellinek, Quinn, Smith, Poitrast, & Goshko, 1991). Further, studies of substance abusing parents have found child-rearing beliefs and attitudes that heighten risk for child abuse (Williams-Peterson et al., 1994), as well as elevated rates of first-time reports to child protective services (Jaudes & Ekwo, 1995), re-reports...
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...RESEARCH PAPER General Topic: America’s War On Drugs Research Paper Question: How is the elimination of Drug supplies going to affect the economies and social concerns involved in the trade? Research Thesis Statement: The total elimination of illegal drugs in circulation will decrease employment in the US and increase unemployment in Afghanistan and Colombia. ABSTRACT: The "War on Drugs" is a campaign undertaken by the Federal government of the US with the assistance of participating countries such as Co lombia and Afghanistan , intend ed to reduce illegal drug trade to curb supply and diminish demand for certain psychoactive substances deemed harmful by the government. This initiative includes a set of laws and policies that are intended to discourage the p roduction, distribution, and consumption of targeted substances. COST: The U.S. government estimates the cost of the War on Drugs by calculating the funds used in attempting to control the supply of illegal drugs, in paying government employees involved in waging the war on crack, and to satisfy rehabilitation costs. This total was estimated by the U.S. government's cost report on drug control to be roughly $12 billion in 2005. Additionally, in a separate report, the U.S. government reports that the cost of incarcerating drug law offenders was $30.1 billion — $9.1 billion for police protection, $4.5 billion for legal adjudication, and $11.0 billion for state and federal corrections...
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...most societies though considering other risk factors such as child exposure to violence and mental or biological health. The risk factors aside research have examined alcohol and drug abuse to be the major contributor to crime. The relationship of narcotics to crime is quite complex and yet controversial; the puzzling question is whether people who use drugs are already crime oriented or is there a direct connection between drugs and alcohol consumption to criminal activities. Taking a case study of the Australian community it has been documented that the estimated cost of alcohol and drug-related crime range from $1.96 billion to over $4 billion. The statistics are quite the same to every as alcohol and drugs prove to be the biggest ingredient to spark up the crime. Through observational study, it has been identified that illegal drug users who engage in intensive drug use are bound to amplify and take part in pre-existing criminal activities. This has sensitized most communities to come up with government response organization that work on combating the spread of alcohol and drug use. The priority of such organization in current policy strategies is the prevention of the onset of drug and alcohol use. Crime involvement to drugs in this context ranges from buying, use, manufacture or distribution of illegal drugs (such as heroin, cocaine, and...
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...Substance Abuse and Psychosis in Adolescents Over the past several decades, the U.S. population has grown significantly and continues to do so at a rapid pace. The most recent U.S. Census Bureau figures estimate that the population in the United States is currently nearing 304,800,000. Of this tremendous number, approximately one quarter are children under that age of eighteen years and over 40 million are adolescents (U.S. Census Bureau, 2001a). For the purpose of this examination, we will define adolescents as individuals between the ages of ten and eighteen years, although it is important to keep in mind that there are many different definitions and understandings of adolescents, most of which are not as directly related to chronological age (Santrock, 2001). Adolescents are a very special population because these are often the years in which childhood and adulthood become blurred, roles, expectations and needs change, as well as significant physical and psychological growth. As we also know, experimentation is often characteristic of adolescence and this experimentation can be physical, sexual or philosophical; all of which may possibly lead to drug use. This paper seeks to examine the question of whether or not drug abuse is related to psychosis in adolescents. Literature Review Adolescent Drug Use According to a national study in 2006, over 60 percent of reported that drugs were used, kept and sold on their school campuses on a regular basis. ...
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...Sociology 225 Research Paper Marijuana as a Gateway Drug The gateway theory is a hypothesis which states that the use of gateway drugs (alcohol, tobacco and marijuana) lead to the use of more illicit drugs such as heroin and cocaine. According to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), marijuana is a Schedule I substance under the Controlled Substances Act. “Schedule I drugs are classified as having a high potential for abuse, no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, and a lack of accepted safety for use of the drug or other substance under medical supervision.” Marijuana is thus considered by the U.S. government to be more dangerous than cocaine and opium - both Schedule II drugs, and at the same time a gateway to these harder and more addictive drugs. The government’s position is not only paradoxical, but should be a reason for debate as to the credibility of the gateway theory. A detailed look is warranted because of the magnitude it has on affecting U.S. drug policy. According to the “Reassessing the marijuana gateway effect” article, there are three phenomena which represent the evidence for a marijuana gateway effect. The first is “the relative risk of hard drug initiation for adolescent marijuana users vs. non-users. In one U.S. study, the risk of drug progression for a marijuana user was 85 times that of a non-user” (Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse 1994). The figure makes apparent sense because as will be seen an individual...
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...Drug abuse in Africa Sections ABSTRACT Introduction Historical background Current drug abuse situation in Africa Effects of drug abuse in Africa Control mechanisms Future trends Details Author: T. ASUNI , A. O PELA Pages: 55 to 64 Creation Date: 1986/01/01 Drug abuse in Africa T. ASUNI Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Lagos, Nigeria A. O PELA Clinical Pharmacy Unit, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Benin, Benin, Nigeria ABSTRACT Apart from cannabis abuse in northern and southern Africa and khat chewing in north-eastern Africa, the history of drug abuse in Africa is relatively short. The abuse of drugs in Africa is nevertheless escalating rapidly from cannabis abuse to the more dangerous drugs and from limited groups of drug users to a wider range of people abusing drugs. The most common and available drug of abuse is still cannabis, which is known to be a contributing factor to the occurrence of a schizophrenic-like psychosis. The trafficking in and abuse of cocaine and heroin are the most recent developments in some African countries that had had no previous experience with these drugs. Efforts should be made to design and implement drug abuse assessment programmes to determine the real magnitude and characteristics of the problem and to monitor its trends. A lack of funds and a shortage of adequately trained personnel have made it difficult to implement drug abuse control programmes...
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...n the An Introduction to the drug ratings in the Philippines Background study drug addiction and drug abuse, chronic or habitual use of any chemical substance to alter states of body or mind for other than medically warranted purposes. Traditional definitions of addiction, with their criteria of physical dependence and withdrawal (and often an underlying tenor of depravity and sin) have been modified with increased understanding; with the introduction of new drugs, such as cocaine, that are psychologically or neuropsychologically addicting; and with the realization that its stereotypical application to opiate-drug users was invalid because many of them remain occasional users with no physical dependence. Addiction is more often now defined by the continuing, compulsive nature of the drug use despite physical and/or psychological harm to the user and society and includes both licit and illicit drugs, and the term "substance abuse" is now frequently used because of the broad range of substances (including alcohol and inhalants) that can fit the addictive profile. Psychological dependence is the subjective feeling that the user needs the drug to maintain a feeling of well-being; physical dependence is characterized by tolerance (the need for increasingly larger doses in order to achieve the initial effect) and withdrawal symptoms when the user is abstinent. INTRODUCTION Illegal drug use is “almost automatically”([1]) associated with criminal behaviour. The statistical...
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... Abstract Contingency management in medicine is a treatment plan that gives immediate rewards for desired changes in behavior. It is based on the principle that if a good behavior is rewarded, it is more likely to be repeated. This is often used in the treatment of drug and alcohol abuse, and is being studied as a smoking cessation method. Marijuana is the most commonly used illicit substance in the United States, with approximately 5.5 million regular weekly users and high prevalence among young adults. In recent years, there has been a significant increase in marijuana use as well as in rates of marijuana use disorders among adults in the 18- to 29-year old age range, most markedly among members of ethnic groups. This paper will define contingency management and how it is implemented by a competent and trained human service worker. By using contingency management the effective treatment of marijuana abuse and the ability to abstain will be investigated. Introduction Contingency management in medicine is a treatment plan that gives immediate rewards for desired changes in behavior. It is based on the principle that if a good behavior is rewarded, it is more likely to be repeated. This paper will define contingency management and how it is implemented by a...
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