Stimulants Flashcards
Stimulant List
Caffeine-Coffee, energy drink etc.
Nicotine-Cigarettes
Cocaine
Methamphetamine
Amphetamines
Methylphenidate: Concerta, Ritalin, Adderall for ADHD
Stimulant
Class of drug that elevate mood
Increase feelings of well-being
Increase energy
Increase alertness
Caffeine
- The activation of numerous neural circuits by caffeine also causes the pituitary gland to secrete hormones that in turn cause the adrenal glands to produce more adrenalin
- Adrenalin is the “fight or flight” hormone, so it increases your attention level and gives your entire system an extra burst of energy
- Research indicates that you get some stimulating effect from caffeine intake and any tolerance you build up is minimal
- Caffeine increases the production of dopamine in the brain’s pleasure circuits, thus helping to maintain the dependency on this drug-average of 90% Canadians
- Caffeine can create a physical dependency. The symptoms of withdrawal from caffeine begin within one or two days after you stop consuming it
- Withdrawal symptoms include: Headaches, nausea and sleepiness and affect about ½ people
Nicotine
- Nicotine imitates the action of a natural neurotransmitter called acetylcholine and binds to a particular type of acetylcholine receptor, known as the nicotinic receptor
- In between nicotine doses, chronic smokers maintain a high enough concentration of nicotine to deactivate the receptors and slow down their recovery. This is why smokers develop a tolerance to nicotine and experience reduced pleasure from it
- In smokers, repeated nicotine stimulation does increases the amount of dopamine released in the body-reward pathway
Cocaine
- power and crystallized
- Powder is a hydrochloride salt, made from the leaf of the Erythroxylum coca plant
- Crack is the smokable form of cocaine that is processed with ammonia or baking soda and water, and heated to remove the hydrochloride
Speedball
cocaine or crack combined with heroin or crack and heroin smoked together
How is cocaine used
- Snorted in powder form, through the nostrils, where the drug is absorbed into the bloodstream through the nasal tissues
- Injected, using a needle and syringe, to release the drug directly into the vein
- Heated in crystal form and smoked inhaled into the lungs
- Street dealers dilute cocaine with cornstarch, talcum power or sugar or with other drugs!
- Crack cocaine is smoked in a glass pipe
- Powder cocaine is usually snorted or injected (mainlining) or can be rubbed into mucous tissues i.e. gums. Snorting produces a high that is less intense but lasts longer
- Injecting or smoking cocaine produces a rapid high (rush) because it is absorbed in the blood stream quickly, intensifying its effects
Dopamine
Affects brain process that control movement, emotional response and ability to experience pleasure and pain
Plays crucial role in our mental and physical health
Dopamine’s effect on Parkinson’s disease & Schizophrenia
Parkinson’s disease = little to no dopamine (give L-DOPA)
Schizophrenia = excess dopamine
Cocaine’s effect on Dopamine
- Cocaine increases dopamine by preventing dopamine reuptake, leaving more dopamine in the synapse
- Cocaine binds to the dopamine and does not allow it to recycle. Get dopamine buildup and it floods the synaptic gap. Flood ends after about 30 min. and the person is left yearning to feel as he or she once did
Amphetamines
- Mimic the effect of adrenaline on the body
- Ritalin, Adderall, Cylert etc
- Known as uppers, bennies, jelly bean, wake ups, eye openers
- Medically used in1920s, initially used to treat asthma, bronchodilator
- WWII, over 72 million tabs were given to soldiers to keep them alert awake and aggressive
- Highly addictive, develop tolerance very quickly
- Increase the activity of the monoamine neurotransmitters: serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine
- The drugs stimulate the release of the monoamine neurotransmitters, which leads to elevated levels in the synapses.
Amphetamines Short-term Effects
Dry mouth
Anorexia: hence the diet pill!
H/A
Dilated pupils
Insomnia
Dry, itchy skin
Acne, sores
Fever, flushing & sweating
Uncontrollable movements
Elevated BP, increased HR, increased resp
Amphetamines Long-term effects:
Addiction
Withdrawal
GI and nutritional
Heart disease
Neurological damage
Psychological
Methamphetamines
Similar in structure to amphetamines
CNS stimulant
Made in clandestine labs with over-the-counter ingredients
Also known as: speed, meth, chalk, smoked form is known as ice, crystal, crank
White, odorless, bitter-tasting, crystalline power that easily dissolves in water or alcohol
Effects can last 6-8 hrs.
After initial rush there is a state of agitation
Methamphetamines Long-term
Extreme weight loss
Meth mouth
Anxiety
Confusion
Mood disturbances
Violent behavior
Psychotic features
Watch You Tube Video-Bait Car
Methamphetamines Short-term side-effects
Wakefulness,
Increased physical activity
Decreased appetite
Increased resp.
Irregular heart beat
Increased BP
hyperthermia
Chronic meth use changes the brain function
- reduced motor skills
- impaired verbal learning
- structural and functional changes in areas of the brain assoc. with emotion and memory
Bath Salts
- name given to a family of drugs that have one or more manmade chemicals related to cathinone
- Cathinone is an amphetamine-like stimulant found naturally in the khat plant
- Common manmade cathinones found in bath salts include 3,4-methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV), mephedrone (“Drone,” “Meph,” or “Meow Meow”), and methylone, but there are many others
- sold in small plastic or foil packages labeled “Not for Human Consumption”
- Sometimes labeled as “plant food”—or, more recently, as “jewelry cleaner” or “phone screen cleaner”—they are sold online and in drug product stores.
Bath Salts: Effects
- Use of bath salts sometimes causes severe intoxication (a person seems very drunk or “out of it”) and dangerous health effects. There are even reports of people becoming psychotic (losing touch with reality) and violent
- Produce feelings of joy and increased social interaction and sex drive. These chemicals can also cause people to feel paranoid and nervous and to have hallucinations (see or hear things that are not real).
- These drugs raise the level of dopamine in brain paths that control reward and movement
- can also raise heart rate and blood pressure
- raises brain dopamine in the same way as cocaine but is at least 10 times stronger
Steroid hormones
- increase protein synthesis within cells, which results in the buildup of cellular tissue (anabolic), especially in muscle
- Used therapeutically to stimulate bone growth and appetite, induce male puberty and treat chronic wasting conditions i.e cancer, AIDS
- Anabolic = promote anabolism (cell growth): protein synthesis from amino acids,
- increased appetite
- increased bone remodeling and growth
- stimulation of bone marrow which increases production of RBC = more muscle cells for more strength
Profile of steroid Abuse
Middle-class
Heterosexual men
Median age of 25
Non-competitive bodybuilders and non-athletes
Use for cosmetic purposes
Virilization
is a condition in which a female develops characteristics associated with male hormones (androgens
Androgenic Effects of steroids
Virilizing = they affect the development and maintenance of masculine characteristics
Pubertal growth, sebaceous gland oil production, sexuality (esp. fetal development), growth of clitoris in females and the penis in male children (no the adult penis does not grow), increased growth of pubic, beard, chest and limb hair
Increased vocal cord size, deepening the voice, increased libido, suppression of natural sex hormones and impaired production of sperm
Steroid negative side effects
- headaches
- baldness
- strokes/blood clots
- high bp/heart disease
- neausea
- bloating
- impotence
- reduced spearm count
- aching joints
- aggresive behaviur
- increase risk of tendon injuries
- severe acne on face and back
- liver damage
- mood swings
- development of breasts
- urinary and bowl problems
- enlarged prostate
- shirkage of testicles
- enlarged clitoris
- increased facial/body hair (women)
- deepended voice
- menstral problems
steroid Psychiatric Effects
- Affect a part of the brain called the limbic system, which controls mood.
- Long-term steroid abuse can lead to aggressive behavior and extreme mood swings.
Aggression
Violence
Mania
Psychosis
Depression
Suicide
“Roid Rage”
