HUSR 434 Summary: Chapter 1

Chapter One discusses the classification of psychoactive drugs and addictive properties based on

the physical and mental effects of their chemistry. There are three main divisions: Uppers,

Downers, and All Arounders. The uppers are stimulants that increase energy in muscles, mood,

and alertness, such as Amphetamine, Caffeine, Cocaine, Nicotine, and much more. Downers,

including Alcohol, Antihistamines, Opiates, and Sedative-hypnotics, give the opposite effect,

making the individual feel relaxed or drowsy. All Arounders (psychedelics) are drugs like

Anticholinergics, Cannabinoids, Indoles, and Phenylalkylamines, that are a combination that acts

like uppers and downers. Historically, psychoactive drugs were used for a variety of reasons:

humans needing to cope with their environment, to show the susceptible brain chemistry from

these drugs, businesses and governments attempting to control drug trade and revenue, the

refinement and manufacturing of drugs, and finding new methods to deliver drugs to the brain

effectively. Opium was used for medicinal and spiritual purposes to cure all, but our advances in

morphine, cocaine, and heroin led to its commercialization. Acts such as the Food and Drug Act,

The Smoking Opium Exclusion Act, and the Harrison Narcotic Act sparked the growth of illegal

drug sales. This new age of regulation brought a decline in alcohol-related diseases, domestic

violence, and crime. The 1930s through the 1960s, Alcoholics Anonymous and the Marijuana

Tax Act were effective, but government authority was being tested with the increase in use of

marijuana and LSD. The 1970s and 1980s had a discovery in uppers where smokable forms of

cocaine and methamphetamine increased the intensity of the rush. In the 1990s, people became

interested in the link between psychoactive drugs, brain chemistry, and mental illness with the

discovery of more neurotransmitters. The war in Afghanistan and Iraq brought much PTSD, and

many veterans were prescribed opiates, creating a new era for downers.