the low side of the high life
t
here are a lot of drugs out there, and it’s
more than likely that sometime, someplace
you will be offered an illegal drug.
Wondering what is meant by illegal drugs?
Some of the most common are: ECSTASY,
COCAINE, MARIJUANA, SPEED, ACID,
CRACK, INHALANTS AND HEROIN.
There’s a reason these drugs are illegal:
they do harm to your body, they get in
the way of your ability to make smart
decisions for yourself, and most are
addictive. And don’t believe all the talk
about some drugs making you happy all
the time or giving you an insight into the
meaning of life — they don’t. What they
M y fr ie nd sa id th at m
ar iju an a (p ot , we ed ,
ha sh ,
gr as s, m ar y ja ne ) isn
’t as ba d fo r yo u as ci
ga
re tt es ?
Is th at tr ue ?
Not at all true!
Smoking one
joint
(marijuana ciga
rette) does the
same
damage to yo
ur body as five
cigarettes.
Smoking pot
also makes yo
u tired and
hungry, lowers
your ability to
concentrate
and remember
things, and dec
reases
your judgemen
t and coordin
ation.
Just like tobac
co, smoking p
ot regularly
can damage yo
ur lungs, mou
th and
throat. Long-te
rm effects can
be mental
health problem
s, slowed reflex
es, and
hallucinations
(weird visions)
.
do give you is a quick pulse of pleasure and
that can leave you feeling crappy for a long
time. And, in the worst scenario, they can
leave you dead. Is that a risk worth taking?
Here’s some facts on “what’s out there” in the
drug world (and more reasons why it makes
sense to say no to drugs):
or
ll if I wi ll ha ve a go od
Is th ere an y wa y to te
ac id ?
ba d tr ip be fo re I dr op
CP),
), angel dust (P
NO! Acid (LSD
nogens
s are all halluci
and mushroom
ce strange
they can indu
(which means
known as
g visions, also
and disturbin
ifferently
ryone reacts d
the “trip”). Eve
ke, your
amount you ta
to them. The
where
ur mood, and
personality, yo
the
play a role in
l
al
g
ru
d
e
th
you take
under
u have. People
kind of trip yo
ns have
of hallucinoge
the influence
emselves
seriously hurt th
been known to
and others.
n leave
lucinogens ca
al
h
,
er
b
em
Rem
d, scared
ressed, confuse
ep
d
g
in
el
fe
u
yo
nightmare
most believable
e
th
e
lik
un
ot
(n
us and
er had), anxio
ev
e
’v
u
yo
at
th
is even
What makes th
l.
o
tr
n
co
f
o
t
ou
once your
htmare is that
ig
n
a
f
o
re
o
m
op until
d, you can’t st
te
ar
st
as
h
ip
tr
n its course.
the drug has ru
36
© 2000 HealthPartners and Group Health Cooperative
t if yo
Are in ha la nt s al l ri gh
in a wh ile ?
u on ly do th em on ce
ad to
me use can le
ti
en
o
n
ve
E
!
No
of
eath from lack
d
d
an
se
o
rd
ove
eath”
den sniffing d
d
su
“
r
o
en
yg
ox
failure).
result of heart
a
e
b
to
t
gh
u
o
(th
sniffed
ances that are
st
b
u
(s
ts
an
al
Inh
gerous
rush) are dan
d
ea
h
a
t
ge
to
xygen
shut off the o
because they
they are
rain. Although
b
e
th
to
g
in
go
gal to
gs and not ille
ru
d
ly
ct
ri
st
t
no
, paint,
es, deodorants
u
gl
in
ta
er
(c
y
bu
can do
aerosols) they
d
an
e,
n
li
so
ga
, heart,
e to your lungs
ag
am
d
s
u
o
ri
se
e greatest
d kidneys. Th
an
r
ve
li
,
in
ra
b
inhalants
ember about
m
re
to
r
ge
an
d
late
difficult to regu
ry
ve
’s
it
at
th
is
, so it’s
u are taking in
yo
ch
u
m
w
o
h
ie!
verdose and d
o
to
sy
ea
ry
ve
I wish I were bigger so I could do better in football.
Some kid in the locker room told me steroids had
helped him. It seems like a good idea to me.
Nope - BAD idea. Steroids are drugs that
copy the effects of testosterone, the male
sex hormone. Steroids can help you get
buff and give you a more muscular body.
But are you willing to pay the price? Side
effects for guys include balding, enlarged
breasts, acne, shrinking testicles (balls),
difficulty or pain in urinating (peeing) and
impotence (when the penis is unable to get
stiff or hard if sexually aroused). Girls may
permanently develop a lower voice, a lot
of hair on face and body, problems with
their period, smaller breasts and acne.
Since steroids cause your body to develop
too soon and too fast, your growth may be
permanently stunted. Some other side
effects for both guys and girls are trembling,
fluid retention, aching joints, jaundice
(skin and whites of the eyes turn yellow)
and liver damage. Also, if you inject
steroids with shared needles, you can get
hepatitis or HIV.
37
© 2000 HealthPartners and Group Health Cooperative