Pictures of taking Drugs

WAYS TO USE DRUGS

INJECTABLE

SNORTING

A PERSON WHO USE DRUGS

CAUSES

EITHER INJECTABLE OR TAKE VIA DRINKING

BY SMOKING

CAUSE OF INJECTING 

     Fragment of a hypodermic needle stuck inside the arm of an IV drug user (x-ray)

METH CRYSTALS

How to use Marijuana

• Ingestion. People who ingest cocaine might experience less blood flow to the digestive system, resulting in bowel gangrene.
• Injection. People who inject cocaine run all the risks associated with injecting, including:
• Puncture scars.
• Infections.
• Allergic reactions.
• Contraction of diseases such as HIV and Hepatitis C.
• Snorting. The most common method of cocaine use, snorting harms the body parts it brings the drug into contact with:
• Because the cocaine powder can irritate and damage the sensitive tissue in the nasal cavity and throat, many chronic users suffer from runny, bloody, and stuffy nose.
• Snorting cocaine regularly long term can lead to tissue erosion, nasal septal perforation, and additional inflammatory processes throughout the air passages.

·  MARIJUANA

·         

·         Marijuana is usually rolled up in a cigarette called a joint or a nail. It can also be brewed as a tea or mixed with food, or smoked through a water pipe called a bong.

·         Cannabis1 is number three of the top five substances which account for admissions to drug treatment facilities in the United States, at 16%. According to a National Household Survey on Drug Abuse, kids who frequently use marijuana are almost four times more likely to act violently or damage property. They are five times more likely to steal than those who do not use the drug.

·         Marijuana is often more potent today than it used to be. Growing techniques and selective use of seeds have produced a more powerful drug. As a result, there has been a sharp increase in the number of marijuana-related emergency room visits by young pot smokers.

·         Because a tolerance builds up, marijuana can lead users to consume stronger drugs to achieve the same high. When the effects start to wear off, the person may turn to more potent drugs to rid himself of the unwanted conditions that prompted him to take marijuana in the first place. Marijuana itself does not lead the person to the other drugs: people take drugs to get rid of unwanted situations or feelings. The drug (marijuana) masks the problem for a time (while the user is high). When the “high” fades, the problem, unwanted condition or situation returns more intensely than before. The user may then turn to stronger drugs since marijuana no longer “works.”

·         SHORT-TERM EFFECTS:

·         

·         Loss of coordination and distortions in the sense of time, vision and hearing, sleepiness, reddening of the eyes, increased appetite and relaxed muscles. Heart rate can speed up. In fact, in the first hour of smoking marijuana, a user’s risk of a heart attack could increase fivefold. School performance is reduced through impaired memory and lessened ability to solve problems.

·         LONG-TERM EFFECTS:

·         Long-term use can cause psychotic symptoms. It can also damage the lungs and the heart, worsen the symptoms of bronchitis and cause coughing and wheezing. It may reduce the body’s ability to fight lung infections and illness.

·         Drug injection is a method of introducing a drug into the bloodstream via a hollow hypodermic needle and a syringe, which is pierced through the skin into the body (usually intravenous, but also intramuscular or subcutaneous). It often applies to substance dependence and recreational drug use. This act is often colloquially referred to as "slamming", "shooting [up]", "banging", "pinning", or "jacking-up", often depending on the specific drug subculture in which the term is used (i.e. heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine).

·         Although there are various methods of taking drugs, injection is favoured by some users as the full effects of the drug are experienced very quickly, typically in five to ten seconds. It also bypasses first-pass metabolism in the liver, resulting in higher bioavailability and efficiency for many drugs (such asmorphine or diacetylmorphine/heroin; roughly two-thirds of which is destroyed in the liver when consumed orally) than oral ingestion would, meaning users get a stronger (yet shorter-acting) effect from the same amount of the drug. This shorter, more intense high can lead to a dependency—both physical and psychological—developing more quickly than with other methods of taking drugs. As of 2004, there were 13.2 million people worldwide who used injection drugs, of which 22% are from developed countries.^[1]

How to use shabu

In the Philippines, the term for methamphetamine hydrochloride or crystal meth is shabu. It is popular among Filipino drug users because it is relatively cheaper and easier to purchase than other substances. Thus, shabu is also known as the poor man’s cocaine.

The Philippines, in term of illicit drugs, has a growing domestic methamphetamine production alongside being a major consumer ofamphetamines and growing of marijuana in the rural areas. Government agencies have launched major crackdowns and seizures amidst this growing production. The country ranks high together with countries that have big methamphetamine supplies going to North America, Europe, and Southeast Asia as reported by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.

Methods of administration

1. Injection. This poses greater risks for developing blockage of the main lung artery. Injecting this substance causes skin bumps, rashes, and infections. Sharing of common needles also increases the risk of getting blood-borne conditions such as hepatitisor HIV.

2. Smoking though inhalation of vaporized fumes using glass pipes or aluminium foils where a flame is lighted underneath.

3. Insufflication or snorting the fine powder by crushing the methamphetamine. This enables the substance to be inhaled into the nose where it will be absorbed into the mucous membrane of the sinus cavity directly going into the bloodstream.

4. Suppository. One less known way to administer methamphetamine which requires an oral syringe for the dissolved substance.

Health issues for shabu users

Several health issues connected with the use of shabu are as follows:

§  Meth mouth. A condition where shabu users lose their teeth quickly. This results from bruxism or teeth grinding, dry mouth, and poor oral hygiene.

§  Personal hygiene and serious health and appearance issues. Caused by not keeping up with personal hygiene habits, use of unsterilized needles, and skin-picking among others.

§  Increased risk in having sexually-transmitted diseases. Shabu users are likely to have unprotected sexual intercourse.

§  Pregnancy and breastfeeding. Highly at risk since methamphetamine passes through the placenta and is secreted into breast milk. Infants with shabu user mothers are smaller in terms of weight and head circumference.

§  Respiratory problems, lung damage and even death. Caused by fumes coming from shabu laboratories. Chemical residues pollute the soil and cause damage to the environment and to the people living near the area where these are thrown away.

Ways of Taking Drugs

Ways of Taking Drugs

Routes of Drug Administration

At its simplest definition, a route of drug administration is a method in which a drug is taken into the body. It differs from the point at which the drug interacts and affects an individual though. This is typically in the brain and various internal transportation processes have to occur beforehand for the chemical to get there. Routes of drug administration can be split up into three categories: topical, enteral and parenteral. Topical administration is a local effect where the drug is applied directly to the area that it is needed. When it comes to illicit drugs, this includes smoking and snorting. Enteral routes of drug administration involve the digestive tract and involve orally taking the drug or using a suppository. Parental routes make use of other internal pathways, such as blood vessels. This category covers the various types of injections (subcutaneous, intravenous and intramuscular) commonly associated with illicit drug use.

Smoking Drugs

As one of the most common routes of drug administration, smoking encapsulates tobacco, marijuana, opium, heroin, cocaine and various other substances. Whenever someone draws in on a cigarette, the smoke goes to the lungs and is then rapidly absorbed into the bloodstream. This makes it one of the fastest ways for someone to experience a high as the chemicals are transferred to the necessary bodily receptors in seconds.

There are several side effects to smoking which can pose significant risks to the smoker’s health, regardless of the drug involved. An individual who smokes tobacco, marijuana, opium or heroin has a higher chance of experiencing the following:

* Heart disease
* Mouth, throat and lung cancer
* Heart attacks and strokes
* Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (including emphysema and chronic bronchitis)
* High blood pressure (hypertension)
* Bacterial pneumonia and other lung infections

Drugs, such as cannabis and crack, pose greater risks than tobacco to a smoker primarily because they are designed to be inhaled in order for a high to be experienced. In standard cigarettes, the smoke does not necessarily need to enter the lungs and themajority of the above effects can be eliminated.

Snorting Drugs

The snorting of drugs (also called insufflation) is conducted mostly by users of tobacco, cocaine, heroin, ecstasy and amphetamines. Around 30 to 60% of the snorted chemicals will enter the bloodstream through the mucus membrane in the nose. The rest is then swallowed and moves down to the stomach where it finally reaches the blood. In general, the high is experienced within about 15 minutes from the time of snorting.

There are several health risks associated with insufflating drugs. Most famously, drugs such as cocaine have been known to damage the inside lining of the nostrils, damaging the nasal cavity and even destroying the septum, the wall of cartilage between the two nostrils. As well as this, sharing bank notes, straws or pens to snort drugs can result in the spreading of infectious diseases such as hepatitis C and HIV. Other potential dangers also exist, but these vary depending on the drug being taken.

Taking Drugs Orally

One of the simplest ways of taking drugs is through the mouth and allows the drugs to move onto the stomach where they are absorbed by the stomach lining and then enter the bloodstream. The most common drugs to be taken in this way are alcohol, marijuana, opium, amphetamines, ecstasy, LSD and magic mushrooms. Swallowing is one of the safest ways to take drugs for several reasons. Firstly, the substance will be slowly absorbed through the stomach lining resulting in effects which are less extreme and therefore less dangerous. Secondly, an individual’s digestive system is designed to induce vomiting if that person ingests anything risky. There have, however, been cases of people dying from swallowing cocaine, showing that there are still some dangers present with this particular route of administration.

Using Suppositories

One of the riskier methods of drug intake is the use of suppositories where the substance is absorbed through the mucus membrane in the rectum. This is not a typical method of drug administration, although water-soluble drugs such as speed, ecstasy and cocaine have been known to be taken in this way.

This activity can be very risky, especially since the mucus membranes around the rectum are very sensitive. If the substance taken is too acidic or caustic, it can burn the lining causing irreparable damage. Additionally, inserting anything into the anus can result in the lower colon being perforated which can then lead to a range of symptoms including death.

Injections and Drugs

This route of administration is a recent development in the drug scene and involves a syringe full of an illicit substance being injected directly into the blood stream. This can be done in three different ways:

* Subcutaneous Injections: Directly into the soft tissue just beneath the skin.
* Intravenous Injections: Directly into a vein found under the surface of the skin.
* Intramuscular Injections: Directly into a muscle found deeper in the body.

This is one of the more popular methods of drug use as the full effects are felt almost immediately, typically within 3 to 5 seconds. It also bypasses many of the body’s defenses and delivers more of the drug to the brain. This is why injecting illicit substances is one of the more dangerous routes of administration as substances which would have normally been rejected by the stomach or blocked by the skin can enter into the bloodstream without any trouble. This can then lead to the following dangers:

* Increased chance of infection due to contaminated needles or drugs. Those who share syringes also run the risk of spreading blood-borne diseases, such as HIV and hepatitis.
* Scarring of the veins. This is caused by blunt syringes and can lead to the vein collapsing.
* Arterial damage at the injection site, which can lead to hemorrhaging, distal ischemia, gangrene, endarteritis and thrombosis.

There is also an increased chance of addiction for those who take drugs via injections. This is because the heightened feelings that they experience may lead them to come back and repeat the action simply to relive the previous emotions.