B1 - Drugs Flashcards
What is the main problem with most drugs?
They can change the body’s chemistry enough so that the person is addicted to the drug
Withdrawal symptoms are usually very unpleasant
What are drugs?
Chemicals that alter the chemical reactions happening in the body
What are the 3 types of drug?
Medicinal (drugs that cure or relieve people of illnesses)
Recreational (legal or illegal)
Performance enhancing (sports)
What are the 2 main types of performance enhancing drug and what do they do?
Anabolic steroids cause an increase in muscle size
Stimulants increase heart rate
What 2 types of problems do performance enhancing drugs usually have?
Health issues
Ethical issues
What are the 2 ethical arguments against performance enhancing drugs?
It’s unfair to give someone an advantage by taking drugs and not just through training
Athletes may not be fully informed of the health risks that these drugs have
What are the 2 ethical arguments for performance enhancing drugs?
Athletes have the right to make their own decision about whether taking drugs is worth the risk
Drug-free sport isn’t really fair anyway because people have access to different facilities, coaches etc.
What are statins?
Prescribed drugs used to lower the risk of heart and circulatory disease
What has other use have we found that stains are useful for?
They lower blood cholesterol and risk of heart disease in diabetic patients
How were these findings about the uses of statins found?
The original research was done by the government
It compared 2 groups of 3000 patients - those who had taken statins and those who hadn’t
What is the possible health issue with cannabis?
The chemical could be causing mental health problems
What are the 3 steps of drug testing?
Tested on human cells and tissues in the lab
Tested on live animals
Tested on human volunteers (clinical trial)
Why are drugs first tested on human cells and tissues?
To see if there is any initial danger with giving humans these drugs
Why are drugs then tested on animals?
To find out of it does what it is intended to do
To find out about its toxicity and the best dosage
Describe a clinical trial
The drug is tested on healthy volunteers to make sure there is no harmful side-effects when the body is working normally
The drug is given initially as a small dose and increased gradually until the optimum dose is found
The same is then done on people suffering from the illness
Patients are also put into 2 groups where one group is given the drug and the other is given a placebo (fake drug that looks real) to see if the real drug working is also just the placebo effect (when the person thinks they will be cured so they unconsciously make themselves feel better)
