Addiction 

of 
DRUGS
KANAN KAUR

11TH C

17
 What are DRUG ?
A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an
organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished
from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be
via inhalation, injection, smoking, ingestion, absorption via a patch on the skin, suppository,
or dissolution under the tongue.
In pharmacology, a drug is a chemical substance, typically of known structure, which, when
administered to a living organism, produces a biological effect. pharmaceutical drug, also called
a medication or medicine, is a chemical substance used to treat, cure, prevent,
or diagnose a disease or to promote well-being. Traditionally drugs were obtained through
extraction from medicinal plants, but more recently also by organic synthesis. Pharmaceutical
drugs may be used for a limited duration, or on a regular basis for chronic disorders.
 Addiction of drugs
• Peer Pressure Is An Easy Way To Cause Drug Addiction in Youth. Teenagers are particularly
susceptible to peer pressure. That age group proves to be a time of great change and discovery about
who adolescents feel they are and want to become. A teenager who wants to be accepted into a new
peer group may be willing to do things they don’t normally do, including using drugs. Some peers try
to convince them that drug and alcohol use puts them in the company of “cool” kids and shows they
are more mature or willing to be rebellious. 

• Escaping From Reality Teenagers live in turbulent times just in terms of trying to deal with
adolescence, puberty, and world events. Sometimes experimenting with drugs can seem like a quick
fix to avoid the more stressful moments in their day-to-day lives. If that same teenager also has
complications in their life that are painful, they can end up as one of the causes of drug addiction in
youth. These complications can include living with parents who have an unhappy marriage,
general family discord, poor health, financial problems in the family, and other events. 
• Genetics While many of the causes of drug addiction in youth come from events going
on in a person’s life, sometimes genetics come into play. Studies show that the children of
addicts are eight times more likely to become addicts than those whose parents are not
addicts. In addition, several studies support the idea that addiction is caused by genetic
predisposition about half the time. 
• Family Another cause of drug addiction in youth has to do with young people mimicking
what they see around them. Children who grow up around family members who use and
abuse drugs in order to cope with life often mimic those behaviors. They may take it for
granted that this is how adults deal with their lives, especially when multiple family
members have a history of addiction. A parent or guardian who abuses drugs in absence
of having healthy coping skills often passes that philosophy on to their children. It takes
treatment for addiction to help the child learn to develop the ability to face hardships and
become a successful adult without turning to drugs.
• Drugs affect your whole life

• Drugs don’t just affect your physical body and health, they can affect your mental health,
your finances, your relationships, your social life and your criminal record.

• Physical effects can vary

• The way a drug affects you depends on:

• the drug itself

• what type of drug it is
• how you took it
• how much you took
• how strong or pure it is
• how often you take it
• Your body processes drugs in 4 stages:

• Absorption
When you use a drug it is absorbed into your bloodstream. How quickly this happens depends on 
how you took the drug.

• Distribution
Once a drug is in your bloodstream it circulates through your body, being distributed to different organs
and the brain. The drug affects chemicals and receptors within the brain, causing different effects
depending on the type of drug.

• Metabolism
Your body then metabolises the drug or breaks it down into simpler molecules (known as metabolites)
which can be more easily eliminated. Sometimes these metabolites can also affect your body.

• Excretion
Metabolised drugs go through your digestive system and exit your body, usually in urine or faeces.

• How long your body takes to eliminate a drug varies. It depends on many factors, including the drug itself (how
much you took, how strong, etc) and you as an individual (your metabolism, age, health, environment, etc).
 Drug use and its 10 most harmful consequences
• 1. Addiction

• 2. Withdrawal syndrome

• 3. Deterioration of the central nervous system

• 4. Loss of self-esteem and feelings of guilt

• 5. Increased probability of contracting serious illnesses

• 6. Isolation

• 7. Paranoid tendencies

• 8. Financial consequences

• 9. Weakening of the immune system

• 10. Insomnia
 Say NO TO DRUGS
• Fight against drug abuse has been one of the most difficult struggles for mankind because getting other
people to agree that drugs have a bad long term effect is very difficult. Many people believe that there is
absolutely nothing bad about the intake of drugs because they keep in mind only the present situation and
totally ignore the long term effect.

• Talk about it – Talking about the cons of drug abuse may help you or your friends and family come out
of the misconception that drugs don't harm the functioning of the brain. Talking about it will also bring
out other myths that are related to drug intake and can open the eyes of many who usually treat it as a
very casual thing. Putting a thought into the drug taking habit of the Indian society will help us curb the
use of drugs and promote healthy living.

• Rehabilitation centers – There are various rehabilitation centers across the country will help individuals
in their fight against drug abuse. They help a person to get out of the habit by decreasing the dose
gradually and eventually getting rid of the habit totally. Here you are not stopping the use of drugs all at
once because the human body may react to it adversely and make the condition of the person even worse.
• NGOs – There are NGOs which work towards spreading awareness against drug abuse. People
often don’t even know that they are addicted to a particular drug. NGOs have more reach and with
the help of volunteers they go to different places to spread the message against drug abuse. You
could join one yourself or help your family or friend get the help they require.

• Push yourself – Once you know that you are not at a very good place, try and quit. It may take a
while to get used to it, you may feel like giving in to the cravings but just be strict with yourself.
Also, talk to people about it, there are chances that you may slip into depression and that will only
make the situation worse. To win this fight you will need support and will power.
THANK YOU