Notes

Today i will be talking about Drugs and how it affects the youth.

Let me start of with the definition of drugs. Drugs are substances which can be smoke, inhaled or consumed causing a physiological effect. Drugs are categorised within 2 groups. Legal and illegal. Legal drugs are ones such as Aspirin, paracetamol and ibuprofen and more. These are typically prescribed by doctors and used to reduce pain. Today i am primarily focusing on the illegal drugs.

In countries such as the UK, there is a classification system, which ranks drugs based on how harmful they are. There are currently 3 classes which are Class A, Class B and Class C where Class A contains the most dangerous drugs whilst carrying the harshest punishment and Class C carrying the least dangerous drugs with the more lenient drug. Possession of drugs in Class A carries a 7 year of imprisonment, 5 years for Class B and 2 years for Class C.

Marijuana, also known as cannabis, is one of the most popular drug used with 155,8 million users, 2.3 million being students under the age of 17. According to medical studies, cannabis is 4 times more carcinogenic than smoking. This is because Cannabis has a similar structure to neurotransmitters which are produced by the brain. So when the drug enters the body, the brain regards it as a neurotransmitter allowing it to travel around the body and to the brain. This causes side effects such as panic, stress and increase in heart rate, hallucination and more.

Most people who have used marijuana go onto use cocaine. Cocaine is a drug which can be smoked, inhaled as smoke or injected into a vein. According to medical studies, cocaine is used to stimulate the brain which appeals to artists and musicians as it can bring out their creative thoughts. Artists such as Miley Cyrus and Rihanna had admitted to using drugs to inspire songs such as "Diamonds" and "We Can't Stop". Upon use, cocaine changes various aspects of the body. It can dilate the pupils, increase the body temperature, increase the heart rate and blood pressure, and in long term can cause irregular hear attacks, chest pain and severe strokes. The effects of cocaine last up to 5-90 minutes.

Heroin, classified as one of the most dangerous drug, was initially used for medical purposes. Created by Alder Wright, heroin was used as a cough suppressant but was deemed illegal as users would become addicted to it causing more harm than good. In high doses, it has the ability to induce a coma, weaken the immune system and sharing a needle can cause diseases such as HIV to spread.

Where do students under the age of 17 find drugs? Drugs are typically found within school premises sold by peers or drug dealers around the perimeter of the school. According to some reports, drug dealers situate outside school boundaries and use a tactic which involves giving out free samples of drugs to certain students, causing them to gradually become addicted , urging them to buy more. In 2013, a marketplace known as Silk Road was seized by the government and upon investigation found that the organisation sold 1 million products with a net value of 1 billion pounds.

Young students may use drugs for a multitude of reasons, some being;

1)Peer Pressure
An individual may indulge in drugs because of peer pressure. This often gives the mindset "everyone is doing it" so they should too

2)Stress
During secondary school some students are overly stressed during Year 11, especially with the high expectations set by teachers and parents. These students turn to drugs such as marijuana to relax or cocaine for pleasure. They realise later that turning to drugs was a mistake and does not get rid off stress but instead increase their desire for that drug and if they don't receive enough of that drug they undergo withdrawal symptoms.

3)Self-Esteem
In some teenagers, usually around the ages of 14-16, low self-esteem is due to physical appearance or lack of confidence which can lead to self-destructive behaviour. The media, bullies and sometimes family can pressure teenagers to act and look a certain way which can cause them to lose confidence in themselves if those high standards are not met. Drugs and alcahol seem like an easy way to escape this reality.

Drugs are emerging as a threat to many young people and although in recent years there has been a decline in the amount of drug users, an inflation of prices in drugs such as cocaine is gradually countering this decline. So what can be done to reduce this drug increase? Workshops in schools around the country can be setup to highlight the dangers of drugs, parents can monitor, to an extent, their child's behaviour. Students addicted to drugs can be admitted to rehabilitation centers.