The Drug Codeine We used several different sources to gather our information. We go information from Jay Moser and Sue Peterson, our two local pharmacists. We researched medical encyclopedias, journals, and magazines. Codeine is known medically as methylmorphine. It is a drug derived from opium, a poppy plant. It was discovered in 1832 by French chemist Pierre-Jean Robiquet. Codeine constitutes about 0.5 to 2.5 percent of this plant substance. The drug has been in use since the early 1900's and it shares most of the pharmacologic characteristics of morphine, the other alkaloid in opium. Codeine is classified as a narcotic, it has the same painkiller effect as morphine but is only one-sixth to one-tenth as strong. Codeine occurs as a colorless or white crystals or as a white, crystalline powder and is slightly soluble in water and freely soluble in alcohol. The phosphate and sulfate salts of codeine occur as white, needle- shaped crystals or white, crystalline powders. Why is it used? Codeine is most useful in the relief of mild to moderate pain. It is also used as a cough remedy because it suppresses the part of the brain that triggers coughing, and as an anti-diarrheal drug, because it slows down muscle contractions in the intestinal wall. There are possible adverse effects. The most frequently observed adverse reactions include lightheadedness, dizziness, sedation, nausea, vomiting, and sweating. These effects seem to be more prominent in ambulatory patients and in those who are not suffering severe pain. Other adverse reactions include the following: (1) Central Nervous System- Euphoria, dysphoria, weakness, headache, insomnia, agitation, disorientation, and visual disturbances. (2) Gastrointestinal- Dry mouth, anorexia, constipation, and biliary tract spasm. (3) Cardiovascular- Flushing of the face, abnormally slow heartbeat, faintness, and syncope. (4) Genitourinary- Urinary retention of hesitancy, anti-diuretic effect. (5) Allergic- skin rashes. Most drug manufactors list specific warnings to be aware of when taking codeine. (1) Codeine sulfate can produce drug dependence of the morphine type, and therefore has the potential for being abused psychic dependence, physical dependence and tolerance may develop upon repeated administration of Codeine. (2) Codeine may impair the mental and or physical abilities required for the performance of potentially hazardous tasks such as driving a car or operating machinery. (3) Patients receiving other narcotic painkillers, general anesthetics, tranquilizers, or other central nervous system depressants, including alcohol with codeine may exhibit an additive central nervous system depression. Who shouldn't take codeine? Pregnant women should not use codeine because safe use in pregnancy has not been established. Children below the age of three shouldn't be given this drug for that age group hasn't been established. Codeine should be given with caution to certain patients such as the elderly or
Ultima, an elderly curandera, teaches a young boy about herbal remedies by gathering plants growing in the llano to cure the sick. She uses herbs like juniper, yerba del manso, oregano, manzanilla, and osha. Juniper can be used for nausea, headaches, and even some bug bites. It is also used for ceremonial fires. “Of all the plants we gathered none was endowed with so much magic as the yerba del manso” (Anya 39). Yerba del manso could cure burns, sores, piles, colic in babies, bleeding dysentery, and even rheumatism. Oregano can be used for coughs, fever, asthma, and bronchitis. “We wandered on and found some oregano, and we gathered plenty because this was not only a cure for coughs and fever but a spice my mother used for beans and meat" (Anya 40). Ultima also gathers an herb called manzanilla. Manzanilla is used to calm anxiety and settle stomachs. It also eases heartburn, nausea, and vomiting. Ultima uses it to cure a man’s mollera illness. “We were also lucky to find some osha, because this plant grows better in the mountains . It is like yerba del manso, a cure for everything” (Anya 40). Osha helps with coughs, colds, cuts, bruises, stomach troubles and rheumatism. It can also keep poisonous snakes
Is an important extract that contain the glucose were the body is in needed to form energy.
They contain numerous antioxidants and fibers that can help in the treatment of many digestive conditions, including dysentery, gastric ulcers and acute diarrhea.
"Marijuana - Drugs of Abuse and Related Topics - NIDA." Web. 12 Dec. 2011. .
Mikuriya, Tod H. (1969). Marijuana in Medicine: Past Present and Future. California Medicine 110(1), 34–40.
...Marijuana." National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). N.p., 1 Jan. 2014. Web. 15 Apr. 2014.
Marijuana has been used for medicinal purposes for over the 3,000 years and has been met with much resistance in the recent decade (Bearman 12). In the early part of the century, marijuana, also known as cannabis, was a part of the United States Pharmacopeia (USP) for about 90 years, but drug companies began to drop marijuana from medications when the 1937 Marihuana Tax Act was passed (4-6). Medical marijuana can be used in two ways; it can be smoked in a cigarette form or taken in a capsule. Marijuana’s most potent ingredient is delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) can be taken as a pill, but is “easily
Marijuana is one of the oldest cultivated plants. (Nahas,1986) The first people to introduce the potential healing properties of marijuana were the Chinese. About five thousand years ago, the people of the plains of Central Asia began cultivating the plant for its oil and fiber. The United States was introduced to marijuana in the 16th century. It was brought over by the Spanish and British and used for its fiber. The plant’s intoxicating properties were only discovered in the late 19th century. It was used for the production of rope and cloth until the 20th century and now it is widely a drug used preferably for pleasure.
The Web. The Web. 10 Apr. 2014. The 'Standard' of the 'Standard'. http://www.drugwarfacts.org/. Miron, Jeffrey A. & Co.
Also, there is no quality control on marijuana that is circulating on the street. Due to the diverse strains of marijuana, each individual may have a different, possibly adverse response to the drug. “Andrea Barthwell, MD, former Deputy Director at the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), told an audience on Jan. 26, 2005: ‘[I]n the 1970s and 80s, the active ingredient in marijuana, THC, was at 3.5 percent. Today, the THC found in most marijuana averages more than 7 percent. But specific techniques can skyrocket the amount of THC to as high as 27 percent.... ...
It is used for the treatment of arthritis and also for treating the back pain, shoulder pain and knee pain.
...ave shown the effectiveness as weed, and they are known to lose their efficacy after time.
It can also be used to get rid of splinters. A banana peel taped on the affected part will help in dissolving the splinter or it will work the splinter out.
...uses there are cures for diarrhea, eye sores, influenza, burns, helps with kidneys, and even antidepressant, just to name a few.
A considerable amount of literature has been published on cannabis specifically marijuana. These studies classify marijuana into three species: Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica, and cannabis ruderalis. In fact, Cannabis sativa is the most widely used and recognized among the other species due to its ability to produce more fiber and oil. For many years, the plant has been used for making clothes as well as lighting and soap. Nevertheless, cannabis is widely used at the present time for intoxication and medical treatments. Marijuana is usually extracted from the flowers of the female plant (Grinspoon & Bakalar, 1993). According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, marijuana is well-defined as the “dried leaves, flowers, stems, and seeds from the hemp plant Cannabis sativa, which contains the psychoactive (mind-altering) chemical delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), as well as other related compounds. This plant material can also be concentrated in a resin called hashish” (NIDA, 2014).