Different Types Of Addictive Drugs

There are many different types of addictive drugs. The text referred to six different categories of drugs based on their affects to the human brain, their overall tendency for abuse, how addictive they generally are, and how dangerously lethal they can be. The text defines them as psychostimulants, sedatives, and hallucinogens. The psychostimulants give an increased feeling of alertness that is often contrasted with the tranquilizing and depressive effects of the sedative-hypnotics. The hallucinogens give visual illusions and hallucinations that are accompanied by psychosis upon occasion. Although each type of drug listed is often abused and has dramatic negative effects on the brain, not all of them are truly addictive. In order to be addictive a drug must have three effects. First, it must cause the patient to voluntarily self-administer it. Second, it must cause massive spikes in dopamine. Third, it must lower the threshold for reward within the brain’s structure.

The first type of drug discussed was alcohol. Alcohol is a depressive sedative. It calms a person down at higher doses and is used to self-medicate for anxiety disorders. It works by affecting the GABA inhibitors. It is one of the most widely used drugs in America, but it has one of the lowest addiction rates. Only about 6% of users can be classified as alcoholics. Despite its low addictive qualities, alcohol is one of the most toxic substances that people regularly use. Liver damage is a well-known issue. Brain disease is very much a reality following heavy drinking. An often irreversible form of brain injury is Korsaoff’s syndrome. In addition, alcohol is cited as the leading cause of cardiomyopathy.

Similar to alcohol, CNS depressants cause a person to feel tired. ...

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...ny fall in dopamine levels. This would eliminate the spikes of dopamine that made many people addicted to opiates. This idea did not work as people could bite into the capsule and release the whole dose at one point. The text states that oxycodone related emergency room visits skyrocketed by over 50% from 1994-2001. However, these dates do not add up. OxyContin was released in 1996, not 1994. Furthermore, there were massive repercussions and lawsuits to Purdue following the release of the drug. They would not have taken 5 years to correct the mistake and contain the profit lost. Another explanation might be: oxycodone had been growing more popular with cheaper generics. OxyContin came and promised an instant high. Oxycodone’s reputation following the incident probably left it a popular choice for users, regardless of whether Purdue corrected OxyContin’s design flaw.