Another popular drug among young people is Dextromethorphan (DXM), which is a cough-suppressing ingredient in a variety of over-the-counter cold and cough medications. Dextromethorphan, a semi synthetic narcotic, is an ingredient found in any cold medicine with “DM” or “Tuss” in the title or name. there are approximately 70 different products on the market that contain DXM. DXM acts centrally to elevate the threshold for coughing. At the doses recommended for treating coughs 1/6 to 1/3 ounce of medication, containing 15mg to 30mg dextrolmethorphan, the drug is safe and effective.
At much higher doses, dextromethorphan produces disassociate effects similar to those of PCP and ketamine. Tolerance and physical dependence may develop with prolonged use. Withdrawal symptoms include restlessness, muscle or bone aches, insomnia, vomiting, and cold flashes with goose bumps. Teens have reported to drink three or four bottles of cough syrup in one day and take up to 20-30 tablets of Coricidin at once. There have been reported cases of overdoses that have resulted in coma and death. (2).
Again another drug popular with young adults is Ecstasy which is known as the party drug, however the effects of this drug is far from being a party drug. Ecstasy is an illegally manufactured variation of mescaline and amphetamine. It is considered a designer drug- a substance on the drug market that is a chemical analogue or variation of another psychoactive drug. There is no accepted medical use for Ecstasy in the U. S. The majority of the drug is being smuggled into the U. S. but it has been produced in illicit laboratories domestically. Ecstasy is taken as a feel good drug.
Devotees say it produces profoundly positive feelings, empathy for others, elimination of anxiety, and extreme relaxation- hence the nickname “hug drug” or “love drug. ” Ecstasy is also said to suppress the need to eat, drink, or sleep, enabling club scene users to endure all-night and sometimes two, or three-day parties. (2) Tablets sold as Ecstasy are not always pure. As demand for Ecstasy has increased, so has the appearance of Ecstasy “fakes” often containing other substances such as amphetamine, caffeine, codeine, DXM, ephedrine/ephedrine, ketamine, MDA, methamphetamine, and PCP.
When used alone, MDMA (Ecstasy) is dangerous. It is even more dangerous when used in combination with other substances, as the physical and psychological effects are difficult to determine or predict. (2) The short term effects increased heart rate and blood pressure, increased body temperature, possible hyperthermia, jaw and teeth clenching, muscle tension, hypertension, dehydration, chills and or sweating, nausea, blurred vision, faintness, dizziness, confusion, insomnia, and paranoia.
The long term effects rash, depression, sleep disorders, drug craving, and persistent elevation of anxiety, paranoia, aggressive and impulsive behavior. The medical complications are muscle breakdown, hyperthermia, kidney failure, cardiovascular system failure, liver damage, and paralysis. (2). Next on the list of illicit drugs is Methamphetamine, which is a powerful stimulant that activates certain systems in the brain. It is closely related chemically to amphetamine, but the central nervous system effects of methamphetamine are greater.
Both drugs have some medical uses, primarily in the treatment of obesity, but their therapeutic use is limited. The central nervous system actions that result from taking even small amounts of methamphetamine include increased wakefulness, increased physical activity, decreased appetite, increased respiration, hypothermia, and euphoria. Other effects include irritability, insomnia, confusion, tremors, convulsions, anxiety, paranoia, and aggressiveness. Hyperthermia and convulsions can result in death. Illicit methamphetamine, which is almost exclusively methamphetamine hydrochloride, is sold in powder, ice, and tablet forms.
Powder methamphetamine, the most common form available in the United States, is produced domestically and also is smuggled into the country from Mexico. (2) The general effects of this drug is increased heart rate, blood pressure, and respiratory rate, decrease in appetite, elevated alertness, aggression, paranoia, depression, and irritability. The long-term effects is inflammation in the lining of the heart, damage to blood vessels from injection, paranoia, delusions, and mood disturbances may exist long after its use has been discontinued.
Parkinson’s disease-like symptoms may also occur after prolonged use. Strong psychological dependence with varying degrees of physical tolerance, malnutrition, skin abscesses, mood disturbances and psychosis; kidney damage; heart and nerve damage, irregular heart beat, elevated blood pressure, and stroke-producing damage to small blood vessels in the brain. (2) Last but certainly not the least is Methadone, this drug was produced by German scientists during World War II because of a shortage of morphine. Although chemically unlike morphine or heroin, methadone produces many of the same effects.
Introduced into the Unite States in 1947 as an analgesic (Dolophinel), it is primarily used today for the treatment of narcotic addiction. The withdrawal syndrome develops more slowly and is less severe but more prolonged than that associated with heroin withdrawal. Ironically, methadone used to control narcotic addiction is frequently encountered on the illicit market and has been associated with a number of overdose deaths. Methadone is rigorously well-tested medication that is safe and efficacious for the treatment of narcotic withdrawal and dependence. For more than 30 years this synthetic narcotic has been used to treat opiate addiction.
It is, however, only effective in cases of addiction to heroin, morphine, and other opiate drugs, and it is not an effective treatment for other drugs of abuse. Methadone reduces the cravings associated with heroin use and blocks the high from heroin, but it dose not provide the euphoric rush. Consequently, methadone patients do not experience the extreme highs and lows that result from the waxing and waning of heroin in blood levels. Ultimately, the patient remains physically dependent on the opiate but is freed from the uncontrolled, compulsive, and disruptive behavior seen in heroin addicts. (2)