"BEFORE AND AFTER TAKING DRUGS"

What happens to your brain when you take drugs? 

Drugs are made of chemicals, many similar to the chemicals already in our system. 
Drugs alter the way nerve cells normally send, receive, and process information. They do this by:

 (1) Imitating the brain’s natural chemical messengers

(2) By over-stimulating the “reward circuit” of the brain

(3) Flooding the brain with excess chemicals 

(4) Binding to receptors in the brain.

For example, some drugs, such as marijuana and heroin, have a similar structure to chemical messengers, called neurotransmitters, which are naturally produced by the brain. 
Because of this similarity, these drugs are able to “fool” the brain’s receptors and activate nerve cells to send abnormal messages.  
This results in the “high” you feel when you take these drugs.

Other drugs, such as cocaine or methamphetamine, can cause the nerve cells to release abnormally large amounts of natural neurotransmitters, or prevent the normal recycling of these brain chemicals.
Which is needed to shut off the signal between neurons. 
This disruption produces a greatly amplified message that results in a different type of “high.”

Nearly all drugs, directly or indirectly, target the brain’s reward system.  
The overstimulation of this system, which normally responds to natural behaviors that are linked to survival (eating, spending time with loved ones, etc.) produces euphoric effects in response to the drugs. 
This reaction sets in motion a pattern that compels some people to repeat the behavior or abuse more drugs.

As a person continues to abuse drugs, the brain adapts to the overwhelming surges in dopamine by producing less of its own dopamine or by reducing the number of dopamine receptors in the reward circuit. As a result, dopamine’s impact on the reward circuit is lessened, reducing the abuser’s ability to enjoy the drugs and the things that previously brought pleasure.
 This decrease compels those addicted to drugs to keep abusing drugs to attempt to bring their dopamine function back to normal and they may now require larger amounts of the drug than they first did to achieve that initial high-an effect known astolerance.

Long-term abuse causes changes in other brain chemical systems and circuits as well. Drugs of abuse facilitate non-conscious (conditioned) learning, which leads the user to experience virtually uncontrollable cravings when they see a place or a person they associate with the drug experience, even when the drug itself is not available. 
Brain imaging studies of drug-addicted individuals show changes in areas of the brain that are critical to judgment, decision making, learning and memory, and behavior control. Together, these changes can drive an abuser to seek out and take drugs compulsively despite adverse consequences—in other words, to become addicted to drugs.

source.www.phoenixhouse.org › FAQ

" ILLEGAL DRUG TRADE IN THE PHILIPPINES "

The illegal drug trade in the Philippines remains a serious national concern. Two of the most used and valuable illegal drugs in the country are methamphetamine hydrochloride (shabu) and marijuana.Ephedrine and methylenedioxy methamphetamine are also among the list of illegal drugs that are of great concern to the authorities.According to Reuters, the President-elect of the Philippines Rodrigo Duterte has predicted the country could become a 'narco -state' if the country's tide of drug addiction is not pushed back. In 2012, the United Nations said the Philippines had the highest rate of methamphetamine use in East Asia, and according to a U.S. State Department report, 2.1 percent of Filipinos aged 16 to 64 use the drug, which is known locally as "shabu".On Metro Manila, most barangays are being affected by illegal drugs.^[According to the 2011 UN Drug Report, the Philippines has the highest methamphetamine hydrochloride abuse rate.
SOURCE: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illegal_drug_trade_in_the_Philippines.

Health effects of drugs[change | change source]

Drugs can have many different effects on a person's health. Some drugs such as tobacco (a plant that contains a drug called nicotine) and alcohol directly cause hundreds of thousands of people to die every year. Other drugs such as cannabis or psilocybin mushrooms (sometimes called "magic mushrooms") cause no deaths. However even if a drug doesn't cause any deaths directly, there are other health effects to be aware of. Someone who has taken a drug and is experiencing its effects is said to be "intoxicated". People who are intoxicated may do things they otherwise would not do, and they may be unable to safely drive or operate machinery. If an intoxicated person does drive a car/vehicle or operate machinery it may cause accidents, depending on how much of the drug they have had and how affected they are.

Overdosing is when a person takes too much of a drug at once and it becomes very dangerous for their health - they might even die. Some drugs (such as heroin, alcohol and aspirin) are easy to overdose on, while others are nearly impossible to overdose on (LSD, cannabis). Many drugs can cause long term health effects separate from just their short term effects, for instance smoking tobacco can cause cancer, and abusing alcohol can cause liver damage.

Many drugs are used as medicine to help make sick people better. For instance opiates (like morphine, heroin and codeine) are analgesics (pain killers). Nitrous oxide and ketamine are used as anaesthetics to put people and animals to sleep during a surgical operation. Amphetamines can even be legally prescribed by a doctor for attention disorders in some countries, such as the United States.

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Illegal Drugs. When people talk about a "drug problem," they usually mean abusing legal drugs or using illegal drugs, such as marijuana, ecstasy, cocaine, LSD, crystal meth, and heroin. (Marijuana is generally an illegal drug, but some states allow doctors to recommend it to adults for certain illnesses.)

SOURCE: kidshealth.org/en/kids/know-drugs.html

Drugs are chemicals that change the way a person's body works. You've probably heard that drugs are bad for you, but what does that mean and why are they bad?

Medicines Are Legal Drugs

If you've ever been sick and had to take medicine, you already know about one kind of drugs. Medicines are legal drugs, meaning doctors are allowed to prescribe them for patients, stores can sell them, and people are allowed to buy them. But it's not legal, or safe, for people to use these medicines any way they want or to buy them from people who are selling them illegally.

Cigarettes and Alcohol

Cigarettes and alcohol are two other kinds of legal drugs. (In the United States, adults 18 and older can buy cigarettes and those 21 and older can buy alcohol.) But smoking and excessive drinking are not healthy for adults and are off limits for kids.

Illegal Drugs

When people talk about a "drug problem," they usually mean abusing legal drugs or using illegal drugs, such as marijuana, ecstasy, cocaine, LSD, crystal meth, and heroin. (Marijuana is generally an illegal drug, but some states allow doctors to recommend it to adults for certain illnesses.)

Why Are Illegal Drugs Dangerous?

Illegal drugs aren't good for anyone, but they are particularly bad for a kid or teen whose body is still growing. Illegal drugs can damage the brain, heart, and other important organs. Cocaine, for instance, can cause a heart attack — even in a kid or teen.

While using drugs, people are also less able to do well in school, sports, and other activities. It's often harder to think clearly and make good decisions. People can do dumb or dangerous things that could hurt them — or other people — when they use drugs.