How Do Drugs Affect Women

Women who are also victims of domestic violence are at an increased risk of substance use or abuse. Divorce, loss of child custody r the death of a partner or child can also trigger women's substance use or other mental health disorders. Women use substances differently to men, such as using smaller amounts of certain drugs for less time before they become addicted. Women can respond to substances differently for example, they may have more drug cravings and be more likely to relapse after treatment. This could be affected by a women's menstrual cycle. Sex hormones can make women more sensitive than men to the effect of some drugs. Women who use drugs may also experience more physical effects on their hart and blood vessels. Brain changes can be different to those in men. Women may be more

In addition, the risk of still birth is two to three times greater in women who smoke tobacco or marijuana, taking prescription pain relievers or use of illegal drugs during pregnancy. Using substances during pregnancy, the baby may experience withdrawal after birth, a condition called neo-natal abstinence syndrome (NAS). Research has shown that NAS can occur with a woman's use of opioids, alcohol, caffeine and some prescription sedatives. This type of symptoms depends of the drug used, how long and how often the mother used, hoe her body breaks don the drug and if the baby was born full term or prematurely. These can lead to long term effects such as low birth weight, birth defects, small head size, premature birth, sudden infant death syndrome, development delays, and problems with learning, memory and emotional control. Such substances such as marijuana, alcohol, nicotine and certain medicines can be found in the breast milk. however, little is known about the long term effects on a child who is exposed to these substances through their mothers