Cocaine Vs Crack Research Paper
Glenna Morgan
DAAC Ch 6 assignment
DAAC 1304
READ CHAPTER 6
1. What is the difference between cocaine and crack? I have found seven differences between cocaine and crack. They are as follows: Popularity: Crack has become more and more popular as the years have progressed. The use of cocaine as a freebase declined in popularity in the 1980s when it was discovered that mixing cocaine with simple household chemicals, including baking soda and water, and then drying it resulted in a lump of smokable cocaine which is now none as crack. Age: Cocaine has been in existence for quite some time and is one of the oldest drugs available. Crack is a relatively new substance. Effect time: When smoking crack, it takes approximately 10-15 seconds …show more content…
to receive its full effects. When snorting cocaine, it takes a lot longer to feel the effects, approximately 10-15 minutes. Addiction/Danger: Crack is considered a more dangerous and addictive substance. Purity: crack comes in a form of a white crystal rock; while cocaine comes in a form of a white powder. Cocaine is a type of illegal drug derived from coca leaves. This drug distorts the bodys sense of movement and pleasure as well as gives off feelings of euphoria and energizes the body. Cocaine can be snorted, or injected. Crack, a freebase form of cocaine, is smoked.
2. Can cocaine be used safely in moderation? No, one who may be able to shoot up 30 or even 10cc of cocaine can be deadly to a first or second or third time user. What one persons body can handle doesn’t mean someone who uses in moderation can handle the dame does. Eventually when used in moderation you start to crave it more often. Therefore, a moderation user becomes a daily user hince, a more serious drug addiction has occurred from starting out as a moderation user. Some people can handle using cocaine in moderation. However, I have yet to meet anyone who used cocaine in moderation in the beginning not become an addict.
3.
What are some short-term effects of using cocaine? Some short-term effects of using cocaine are as follows: Constricted blood vessels, increases blood pressure and heart rate. It also produces feelings of euphoria as well as anxiety, depression, and excitement. It can also cause seizures and even an overdose. Other effects are increased temperature, and dilated pupils, nervousness, and some paranoia. It produces a feeling of increased energy and well-being. Long-term effects include erratic, delusional or paranoid paranoia. Smoking crack cocaine can produce a particularly aggressive paranoid behavior in users. When addicted individuals stop using cocaine, they often become depressed. Prolonged cocaine snorting can result in ulceration of the mucous membrane of the nose. Acute cocaine poisoning leads to profound CNS stimulations, progressing to convulsions, which can lead to respiratory or cardic arrest.
4. How is cocaine ingested? The routes of administration are commonly used for cocaine in clued the following: snorting, injecting, and smoking. Snorting is a process of inhaling cocaine through the nose, where it is absorbed into the bloodstream through the nasal tissues. Injecting is the use of a needle to release the drug directly into the bloodstream. Smoking, involves inhaling cocaine vapor or smoke into the lings, where absorption into the bloodstream is a rapid as by …show more content…
injection.
5. Who could you go to if you or a friend had any questions about or problems with drugs? I had a bad cocaine habit 6 years ago and I currently have 6 years sober. Back then, as with any user you don’t think you have a problem. My parents never saw it or just didn’t say anything until I hit rock bottom and my dad finally realized he couldn’t save his little girl this time. I was on probation and failed a UA and was locked up in County here in Odessa where I spent 4 months then was sent to SAFPF for 6 months. At the time my best friend was using and we would get high together but not too often. My problem became so out of hand that I lost reality and did have some of the short-term effects and now I suffer from some of the long-term effects of my cocaine abuse. However, if I started using again I know without a bout I could go to my best friends and talk to them about the situation at hand and determine why I decided to pick up again. My best friend is my worse critic except for myself, even though I feel she or they are just as hard on me at times and will give me the reality check I may need. My ex-probation officer without a bout as well I have been in her office just discussing life and how things have been going for over an hour. She is an awesome lady who honestly saved my life. I can also go to my family and several of the police officers I am friends with now. Even though everyone I listed would be disappointed with me, they will also get me the help I needed and help get me back on track. These people are my strongest support group I have ever had. I could also go to AA or NA meetings.
(Ms Jones, I was not sure how you wanted the questions below answered. So, I put the letter as my answer at the end of the question).
1. By the mid 1800s, purified cocaine was _____. (Choose the answer that is NOT true.) C
a) used in patent medicines as a local anesthetic
b) an ingredient in Coca-Cola until the introduction of drug laws
c) used only by indigenous peoples
d) an ingredient in nerve tonics
2. Crack cocaine was developed _____. B
a) with funding by Nancy Reagan as a safer alternative to regular cocaine
b) by drug traffickers as a cheaper and stronger alternative when sales of powdered cocaine declined c) accidentally, by pharmacists working on new medications
d) in home labs in rural areas, hence its nickname ‘hillbilly heroin’
3. True or False? You can become psychologically dependent on cocaine, but it is not physically addictive. False
4. Cocaine is in a class of drugs called _____. A
a) stimulants
b) depressants
c) psychoactives
d) amphetamines
5. When taken, cocaine can _____. (Choose all that apply.) A, B, C, and D all apply
a) Increase your blood pressure and heart rate
b) Produce feelings of euphoria
c) Produce feelings of anxiety and depression
d) Cause you to have seizures
6. How can cocaine (including crack) be taken? (Choose all that apply.) D
a) Snorted
b) Smoked
c) Dissolved in water and injected
d) All of the above
7. A coca leaf contains about _____% cocaine; the cocaine sold by drug dealers has been processed to make it stronger. B
a) .1
b) 1
c) 10
d) 50
8. It is not unusual for drug cartels to use _____ in cocaine production and transportation. C
a) Dogs
b) pharmaceutical-company standards
c) Children as young as 5 years old
d) (All of the above)
9. True or False? Brain scans reveal that cocaine users do not use glucose — the energy source for brain cells — as efficiently as nonusers do. True
10. Using cocaine _____. B
a) affects different people in different ways; some users never seem to have a problem, others become addicted or even die even after casual use
b) affects the reward center of the brain, causing addiction the first time the drug is introduced into the body
c) is physically harmless, as long as the strongly potent leaves are not directly consumed
d) is dangerous, but the process of withdrawal is relatively easy
2. Please complete the following exercise. 15pts
Open the following URL: http://www.metheducation.com, select the section labeled METH FACTS and answer the questions for each of the following categories.
METH OVERVIEW
1. What is the relationship between the brain's release of dopamine and meth addiction? It is an extremely addictive central nervous system stimulant. It has a structure similar to dopamine (the brain’s pleasure transmitter) and causes neurons to release large amount of dopamine to produce a high. This eventually leads to permanent brain damage as natural dopamine production sites are destroyed – forcing the user to become even more reliant on meth for pleasure. Meth usage has more prolonged effects on the brain and central nervous system then even cocaine and amphetamine. Withdrawal from meth is also more intense, painful, and longer-lasting than withdrawal from these other drugs. Recovery from addiction is complicated by physical and mental illnesses, particularly severe – and often suicidal – depression.
2. How is meth made? What dangers are associated with meth production? It is made from common household chemicals. Methamphetamine is a synthetic (or man-made) drug. The manufacturing of meth occurs everywhere; meth labs have been found in homes, cars, hotels, and many other locations. These environments often expose children to the dangers of meth production, and they are volatile chemical atmospheres for everyone involved: neighbors, children, and even the meth producers (“cooks”). The chemicals used to cook meth are explosive and the acid can severly burn you which, can do perminate skin damage not only to you but everyone in the room.
EFFECTS OF METH
3.
List six effects of meth use. Which do you think are most dangerous? Why? Decreased appetite and possible weight loss, possible hallucinations or delusions, insomnia, increased agitation and physical activity, episodes of sudden, violent anger, and teeth loss. Which one do I think is the most dangerous? Honestly I’m not sure, they all can have dangerous effects on you and your body. I believe the following are the most dangerous: decreased appetite, hallucinations/delusions, insomnia, episodes of sudden, violent anger. I say decreased appetite because it becomes a server health issue when the body losses to much weight. You can become very weak and starving the body causes your organs to shut down. After the liver has exhaulsted its means of getting the vitamins etc that it needs to function it will eventually start shutting down. It cannot function properly without food, water etc. Hallucinations/delusions because when you start seeing things that are not there, I believe the mind isn’t functioning the way it is suppose to. Thus, causing an imbalance in your brain that is not normal. This imbalance in your brain can cause you to become crazy and you began to live in a world of false misrepresentation and you’re not living in reality. Insomnia because the body has to have rest and without the proper rest and diet it can cause harmful effects of your body. You can’t function properly much less lead a proper life style. Episodes of sudden, violent anger because violent
tendacies can cause you to be jailed and arrested. When you are messed up on meth you are already living a lifestyle that is false. When you act violently you can get yourself shot and/or kill someone. When my ex-husband was coming down from a fourteen day binge he decided to come to the house and see his son. He fell asleep while I finished getting ready for work. My mistake was waking him up so he could leave and I could go to work. By doing so, he was very angry and abused me as well as cut the phone cord when I tried to call 911. I was left with a knot on the side of my head, a cut on the side of my face. I later found out that he had been up for 14 days on meth. I was taken to the hospital and he took off with my son before the cops showed up. I did not see my youngest son for over 24 hrs he would not bring him back and he knew the cops where looking for him. I have witnessed firsthand the changes and effects that meth can have on someone and the way the change it is nothing nice. It is like the devil himself is present and has taken over the human body. I can’t say this is just from using meth because I felt the same way after using cocaine. You look in the mirror and you have no clue who you are. The person staring back at you isn’t you it’s the devil. They say cocaine and meth is the devils drug I honestly believe that.
4. Compare the "before" and "after" pictures. What differences do you see? The before and after pictures they have for decreased appetite and possible weight loss you can’t even tell they are the same person. You can tell there is a great deal of weight loss, cheeks are sunken in, hair is stringy, oily looking, not healthy at all. Her teeth are messed up and you can tell there is some missing. She honestly looks like a dead girl walking or death hung over. The sad part of this is most addicts think they look good and they can’t even see the effects that drugs have plaid on their appearance.
DANGERS AND RISKS 5. Identify five short-term and five long-term risks of meth use. Five short-term effects of meth are: rashes or sores due to picking at skin, tooth decay, bone loss/malnutrition, poor hygiene and irregular heart beat. Five long-term effects of meth are: HIV/AIDS (from needle usage and sharing), brain damage, hepatitis A, B, C, liver damage, and death.
6. Compare the two pictures of the brains. What is the significance of the color orange in these pictures? The loss of dopamine neurons after heavy meth use there is very little dopamine left in the picture on the right. The “normal” brain has more dopamine or orange color in the picture.
7. What are three dangers that meth production poses for the community? Each pound of meth produces leaves behind upwards of six pounds of toxic waste. These left over chemicals are often poured into nearby plumbing, down storm drains, or directly into the ground. The toxins by-products used to produce meth pose long-term health hazards because they can persist in soil and ground water for years. Meth production is very taxing on the community. Cleanup expenses of meth labs are a significant drain on regional and federal resources. The cost of the average cleanup is around $5,000, but it could cost as much as $100,000.
ROAD TO TREATMENT
8. Discuss three problems that make it difficult to treat meth addicts. There are surrently no medications available to treat addiction or overdose to amphetamine or amphetamine-like drugs such as methamphetamine. * 9. If you could devise a treatment for meth addicts what kinds of things would you incorporate into your program?
THE METH TIMELINE * 10. What was the first over-the-counter product used to make methamphetamine? In what year was this produced? * 11. In 1937 amphetamines were prescribed for narcolepsy. Read the definitions for narcolepsy here. What is the definition for narcolepsy? Why do you think that a meth-like product would help it? * 12. What changes in meth production and use occurred in the 1980s? Why was this development important? * 13. How has the production of meth changed in the United States from 1995 to the present? What has caused this change?
DAAC Ch 6 assignment
DAAC 1304
READ CHAPTER 6
1. What is the difference between cocaine and crack? I have found seven differences between cocaine and crack. They are as follows: Popularity: Crack has become more and more popular as the years have progressed. The use of cocaine as a freebase declined in popularity in the 1980s when it was discovered that mixing cocaine with simple household chemicals, including baking soda and water, and then drying it resulted in a lump of smokable cocaine which is now none as crack. Age: Cocaine has been in existence for quite some time and is one of the oldest drugs available. Crack is a relatively new substance. Effect time: When smoking crack, it takes approximately 10-15 seconds …show more content…
to receive its full effects. When snorting cocaine, it takes a lot longer to feel the effects, approximately 10-15 minutes. Addiction/Danger: Crack is considered a more dangerous and addictive substance. Purity: crack comes in a form of a white crystal rock; while cocaine comes in a form of a white powder. Cocaine is a type of illegal drug derived from coca leaves. This drug distorts the bodys sense of movement and pleasure as well as gives off feelings of euphoria and energizes the body. Cocaine can be snorted, or injected. Crack, a freebase form of cocaine, is smoked.
2. Can cocaine be used safely in moderation? No, one who may be able to shoot up 30 or even 10cc of cocaine can be deadly to a first or second or third time user. What one persons body can handle doesn’t mean someone who uses in moderation can handle the dame does. Eventually when used in moderation you start to crave it more often. Therefore, a moderation user becomes a daily user hince, a more serious drug addiction has occurred from starting out as a moderation user. Some people can handle using cocaine in moderation. However, I have yet to meet anyone who used cocaine in moderation in the beginning not become an addict.
3.
What are some short-term effects of using cocaine? Some short-term effects of using cocaine are as follows: Constricted blood vessels, increases blood pressure and heart rate. It also produces feelings of euphoria as well as anxiety, depression, and excitement. It can also cause seizures and even an overdose. Other effects are increased temperature, and dilated pupils, nervousness, and some paranoia. It produces a feeling of increased energy and well-being. Long-term effects include erratic, delusional or paranoid paranoia. Smoking crack cocaine can produce a particularly aggressive paranoid behavior in users. When addicted individuals stop using cocaine, they often become depressed. Prolonged cocaine snorting can result in ulceration of the mucous membrane of the nose. Acute cocaine poisoning leads to profound CNS stimulations, progressing to convulsions, which can lead to respiratory or cardic arrest.
4. How is cocaine ingested? The routes of administration are commonly used for cocaine in clued the following: snorting, injecting, and smoking. Snorting is a process of inhaling cocaine through the nose, where it is absorbed into the bloodstream through the nasal tissues. Injecting is the use of a needle to release the drug directly into the bloodstream. Smoking, involves inhaling cocaine vapor or smoke into the lings, where absorption into the bloodstream is a rapid as by …show more content…
injection.
5. Who could you go to if you or a friend had any questions about or problems with drugs? I had a bad cocaine habit 6 years ago and I currently have 6 years sober. Back then, as with any user you don’t think you have a problem. My parents never saw it or just didn’t say anything until I hit rock bottom and my dad finally realized he couldn’t save his little girl this time. I was on probation and failed a UA and was locked up in County here in Odessa where I spent 4 months then was sent to SAFPF for 6 months. At the time my best friend was using and we would get high together but not too often. My problem became so out of hand that I lost reality and did have some of the short-term effects and now I suffer from some of the long-term effects of my cocaine abuse. However, if I started using again I know without a bout I could go to my best friends and talk to them about the situation at hand and determine why I decided to pick up again. My best friend is my worse critic except for myself, even though I feel she or they are just as hard on me at times and will give me the reality check I may need. My ex-probation officer without a bout as well I have been in her office just discussing life and how things have been going for over an hour. She is an awesome lady who honestly saved my life. I can also go to my family and several of the police officers I am friends with now. Even though everyone I listed would be disappointed with me, they will also get me the help I needed and help get me back on track. These people are my strongest support group I have ever had. I could also go to AA or NA meetings.
(Ms Jones, I was not sure how you wanted the questions below answered. So, I put the letter as my answer at the end of the question).
1. By the mid 1800s, purified cocaine was _____. (Choose the answer that is NOT true.) C
a) used in patent medicines as a local anesthetic
b) an ingredient in Coca-Cola until the introduction of drug laws
c) used only by indigenous peoples
d) an ingredient in nerve tonics
2. Crack cocaine was developed _____. B
a) with funding by Nancy Reagan as a safer alternative to regular cocaine
b) by drug traffickers as a cheaper and stronger alternative when sales of powdered cocaine declined c) accidentally, by pharmacists working on new medications
d) in home labs in rural areas, hence its nickname ‘hillbilly heroin’
3. True or False? You can become psychologically dependent on cocaine, but it is not physically addictive. False
4. Cocaine is in a class of drugs called _____. A
a) stimulants
b) depressants
c) psychoactives
d) amphetamines
5. When taken, cocaine can _____. (Choose all that apply.) A, B, C, and D all apply
a) Increase your blood pressure and heart rate
b) Produce feelings of euphoria
c) Produce feelings of anxiety and depression
d) Cause you to have seizures
6. How can cocaine (including crack) be taken? (Choose all that apply.) D
a) Snorted
b) Smoked
c) Dissolved in water and injected
d) All of the above
7. A coca leaf contains about _____% cocaine; the cocaine sold by drug dealers has been processed to make it stronger. B
a) .1
b) 1
c) 10
d) 50
8. It is not unusual for drug cartels to use _____ in cocaine production and transportation. C
a) Dogs
b) pharmaceutical-company standards
c) Children as young as 5 years old
d) (All of the above)
9. True or False? Brain scans reveal that cocaine users do not use glucose — the energy source for brain cells — as efficiently as nonusers do. True
10. Using cocaine _____. B
a) affects different people in different ways; some users never seem to have a problem, others become addicted or even die even after casual use
b) affects the reward center of the brain, causing addiction the first time the drug is introduced into the body
c) is physically harmless, as long as the strongly potent leaves are not directly consumed
d) is dangerous, but the process of withdrawal is relatively easy
2. Please complete the following exercise. 15pts
Open the following URL: http://www.metheducation.com, select the section labeled METH FACTS and answer the questions for each of the following categories.
METH OVERVIEW
1. What is the relationship between the brain's release of dopamine and meth addiction? It is an extremely addictive central nervous system stimulant. It has a structure similar to dopamine (the brain’s pleasure transmitter) and causes neurons to release large amount of dopamine to produce a high. This eventually leads to permanent brain damage as natural dopamine production sites are destroyed – forcing the user to become even more reliant on meth for pleasure. Meth usage has more prolonged effects on the brain and central nervous system then even cocaine and amphetamine. Withdrawal from meth is also more intense, painful, and longer-lasting than withdrawal from these other drugs. Recovery from addiction is complicated by physical and mental illnesses, particularly severe – and often suicidal – depression.
2. How is meth made? What dangers are associated with meth production? It is made from common household chemicals. Methamphetamine is a synthetic (or man-made) drug. The manufacturing of meth occurs everywhere; meth labs have been found in homes, cars, hotels, and many other locations. These environments often expose children to the dangers of meth production, and they are volatile chemical atmospheres for everyone involved: neighbors, children, and even the meth producers (“cooks”). The chemicals used to cook meth are explosive and the acid can severly burn you which, can do perminate skin damage not only to you but everyone in the room.
EFFECTS OF METH
3.
List six effects of meth use. Which do you think are most dangerous? Why? Decreased appetite and possible weight loss, possible hallucinations or delusions, insomnia, increased agitation and physical activity, episodes of sudden, violent anger, and teeth loss. Which one do I think is the most dangerous? Honestly I’m not sure, they all can have dangerous effects on you and your body. I believe the following are the most dangerous: decreased appetite, hallucinations/delusions, insomnia, episodes of sudden, violent anger. I say decreased appetite because it becomes a server health issue when the body losses to much weight. You can become very weak and starving the body causes your organs to shut down. After the liver has exhaulsted its means of getting the vitamins etc that it needs to function it will eventually start shutting down. It cannot function properly without food, water etc. Hallucinations/delusions because when you start seeing things that are not there, I believe the mind isn’t functioning the way it is suppose to. Thus, causing an imbalance in your brain that is not normal. This imbalance in your brain can cause you to become crazy and you began to live in a world of false misrepresentation and you’re not living in reality. Insomnia because the body has to have rest and without the proper rest and diet it can cause harmful effects of your body. You can’t function properly much less lead a proper life style. Episodes of sudden, violent anger because violent
tendacies can cause you to be jailed and arrested. When you are messed up on meth you are already living a lifestyle that is false. When you act violently you can get yourself shot and/or kill someone. When my ex-husband was coming down from a fourteen day binge he decided to come to the house and see his son. He fell asleep while I finished getting ready for work. My mistake was waking him up so he could leave and I could go to work. By doing so, he was very angry and abused me as well as cut the phone cord when I tried to call 911. I was left with a knot on the side of my head, a cut on the side of my face. I later found out that he had been up for 14 days on meth. I was taken to the hospital and he took off with my son before the cops showed up. I did not see my youngest son for over 24 hrs he would not bring him back and he knew the cops where looking for him. I have witnessed firsthand the changes and effects that meth can have on someone and the way the change it is nothing nice. It is like the devil himself is present and has taken over the human body. I can’t say this is just from using meth because I felt the same way after using cocaine. You look in the mirror and you have no clue who you are. The person staring back at you isn’t you it’s the devil. They say cocaine and meth is the devils drug I honestly believe that.
4. Compare the "before" and "after" pictures. What differences do you see? The before and after pictures they have for decreased appetite and possible weight loss you can’t even tell they are the same person. You can tell there is a great deal of weight loss, cheeks are sunken in, hair is stringy, oily looking, not healthy at all. Her teeth are messed up and you can tell there is some missing. She honestly looks like a dead girl walking or death hung over. The sad part of this is most addicts think they look good and they can’t even see the effects that drugs have plaid on their appearance.
DANGERS AND RISKS 5. Identify five short-term and five long-term risks of meth use. Five short-term effects of meth are: rashes or sores due to picking at skin, tooth decay, bone loss/malnutrition, poor hygiene and irregular heart beat. Five long-term effects of meth are: HIV/AIDS (from needle usage and sharing), brain damage, hepatitis A, B, C, liver damage, and death.
6. Compare the two pictures of the brains. What is the significance of the color orange in these pictures? The loss of dopamine neurons after heavy meth use there is very little dopamine left in the picture on the right. The “normal” brain has more dopamine or orange color in the picture.
7. What are three dangers that meth production poses for the community? Each pound of meth produces leaves behind upwards of six pounds of toxic waste. These left over chemicals are often poured into nearby plumbing, down storm drains, or directly into the ground. The toxins by-products used to produce meth pose long-term health hazards because they can persist in soil and ground water for years. Meth production is very taxing on the community. Cleanup expenses of meth labs are a significant drain on regional and federal resources. The cost of the average cleanup is around $5,000, but it could cost as much as $100,000.
ROAD TO TREATMENT
8. Discuss three problems that make it difficult to treat meth addicts. There are surrently no medications available to treat addiction or overdose to amphetamine or amphetamine-like drugs such as methamphetamine. * 9. If you could devise a treatment for meth addicts what kinds of things would you incorporate into your program?
THE METH TIMELINE * 10. What was the first over-the-counter product used to make methamphetamine? In what year was this produced? * 11. In 1937 amphetamines were prescribed for narcolepsy. Read the definitions for narcolepsy here. What is the definition for narcolepsy? Why do you think that a meth-like product would help it? * 12. What changes in meth production and use occurred in the 1980s? Why was this development important? * 13. How has the production of meth changed in the United States from 1995 to the present? What has caused this change?