DRUGS

WHAT IS DRUGS?
• Drugs are substances that change a person’s mental or physical state.
They can affect the way your brain works, how you feel and behave, your
understanding and your senses. This makes them unpredictable and
dangerous, especially for young people.
• The effect of drugs are different for each person and drug.
 WHY DO PEOPLE USE DRUGS?
People take drugs because:
1. They are curious and want to see what happens
2. They want to fit in or feel pressured by their peers
3. They enjoy the effect on their body, for example, feeling excited and
energetic, or relaxed and calm
4. They help them cope with situations, for example, reducing pain or
relieving stress
5. They have a drug dependency and need to keep taking them to avoid
with draw symptoms
 HOW DRUGS MADE?
Drugs come from different sources:
1. Plants, for example, cannnabis, mushrooms, or tobacco
2. Processed plant products, for example, alcohol or heroin
3. Synthetic chemicals, for example, ecstasy or amphetamines

The processes used to make drugs varies widely, but drug product have 2
main types of ingredients:
4. Active ingredients, the ingredients that biological affect your body.
5. Inactive ingredients, these generally have no biological effect. They
include binding agents, capsules, dyes, preservatives, flavourings and
other ingredients.
 HOW DO PEOPLE TAKE DRUGS?
People take drugs in different ways. Common methods include:
1. Swallowing tablets or drinking liquids, the body absorbs the drug
through the stomach lining
2. Breathing them into the lungs, the body absorbs the drug through the
lining of the lungs
3. Snorting into the nose, the body absorbs the drug through the thin
nasal lining
4. Injecting, the user injects the drug directly into the bloodstream
5. Through the skin, the body slowly absorbs the drug from a cream or
patch
6. Rectally or vaginally as a suppository, the body absorbs the drug
through the bowel or vaginal lining
 LEGAL AND ILLEGAL DRUGS
Drugs can be:
1. Legal, for example, alcohol, caffeine, and tobbaco
2. Illegal ,for example, cocaine or heroin