Drug Abuse - by @frieda
DRUG ADDICTION
Drug abuse and addiction are ancient as well as contemporary problems. 3,500 BC, an Egyptian Historical document record the production of alcohol: the description of a brewery on an Egyptian papyrus and the document decries that society's reliance on opium.
Ancient Egyptians would have been familiar with the idea of a modern chemist. Their pharmacists prepared prescriptions for ointments, potions, inhalers, and pills by processing plant materials that were used to treat specific illnesses. Records show that they used many preparations, including opium, cannabis, linseed oil and senna. Many modern drugs have originated from the study and isolation of active ingredients from plants with healing properties used in ancient times.
In 5000 BC the Sumerians used Opium, suggested by the fact that they have an ideogram for it which has been translated as HUL, meaning "joy".
Ancient Egyptian Medicine
In the 1600's, a smokable form of opium enslaved many Chinese and the Japenese. In 1493, the use of tobacco is introduced into Europe by Columbus and his crew, returning. The Europeans discovered the addictive nature of nicotine. In 1844, Cocaine is isolated in its pure form.
During the American Civil War, morphine was a widely used painkiller; cocaine was introduced a short time later to relieve veterans addiction to morphine.
Pain Killer for a Demon Headache & a Demon Toothaches
The exact ingredients of Wolcott's Instant Pain Annihilator (c. 1863) are unknown. But ethyl alcohol and opium figured prominently in the mix.
Today, we continue to abuse drugs intended for medical use. LSD was originally used in psychotherapy but was abused in the 1960's as a hallucinogen. The Beatles and LSD are a synonym and they could not sing its praises enough! PHENCYCLIDINE (PCP), was developed in the 1950's to be used as an intravenous anaesthetic in the United State, before being abused in the 1980's. Its use as an anaesthetic was discontinued due to the high incident of patients experiencing postoperative delirium with hallucinations. PCP is no longer produced or used for medical purposes in the US.
Brain Damage due to Drug Abuse
After a decline in abuse during the late 1980's and 1990's, the abuse of PCP has increased slightly in recent years. Street names for PCP include Angel Dust, Hog, Ozone, Rocket Fuel, Shermans, Wack, Crystal, Boat, Tic Tac, Zoom and Embalming Fluid.
Street names for PCP combined with marijuana include ***Killer Joints, Super Grass, Fry, Lovelies, Wets, and Waters.
Why do people get addicted to certain drugs? Answers lie in the complex interactions of neurons, drugs, and individual behavior.
The Role of Receptors
A Neuron is classified as bipolar, unipolar or multipolar on the basis of their structure. On the basis of their functions, neurons are classified as sensory neurons, interneurons or motor neurons.
The nervous system produces at least 30 types of neurotransmitters. Calcium ions diffuse into synaptic knobs in response to action potentials, releasing neurotransmitters.
Eating hot fudge sundaes is highly enjoyable, but we usually don't feel driven to consume them repeatedly. Why do certain drugs compel a person to repeatedly use them, even when knowing that doing so can be dangerous?
The definition of addiction? The biology of neurotransmission helps to explain how we, and other animals, become addicted to drugs.
Understanding how neurotransmitters fit receptors can explain the action of certain drugs. When a drug alters the activity of a neurotransmitter on a postsynaptic neuron, it either halts or enhances synaptic transmission. A drug that binds to a receptor, blocking a neurotransmitter from binding there, is called an antagonist. A drug that activates the receptor, triggering an action potential, or that help a neurotransmitter to bind, is called an agonist. The effect of the drug depends upon whether is an antagonist or an agonist. On the particular behaviors the affected neurotransmitter normally regulates, and in which part of the brain drugs affect neurotransmitters and their binding to receptors. Many addictive substances bind to receptors for the neurotransmitter dopamine in a brain region called the nucleus accumbens.
##Part 2 to follow: Repeated drug abuse.
Many of us regularly indulge in drugs of abuse, such as alcohol or nicotine. We may even occasionally overindulge. But, in most cases, this doesn’t qualify as addiction. This is, in part, because we manage to regain balance and choose alternative rewards like spending time with family or enjoyable drug-free hobbies.
However, for those susceptible to excessive “wanting,” it may be difficult to maintain that balance. Once researchers figure out what makes an individual susceptible to developing a hyperreactive “wanting” system, we can help doctors better manage the risk of exposing a patient to drugs with such potent addictive potential.
Wow great post @brightideas really interesting
We are suffering it here in my place Katsina. A lot of young people are into drug abuse including young hausa wives.
i think, There are 3 factors (reasons) that can be said as "trigger" someone in drug abuse. These three factors are the factors themselves, environmental factors, and factors of drug willingness itself.
I hope this helps,
your post is very good
the methods used in the ancient corn were great too.
Thats was found recently in egypt, thanks for the history searchers that made alot of mysterious things obvious and confirmed also some thoughts
In Odyssey also is mentioned "Drug", in the third book, when Telemachus goes to Menelaus askinf for news from his father, Hellen give them an egiptian potion in order to forget painfull thinking
Thank you for sharing. Just love all this sometimes 'madness' of the past!