Drug Terrorism Facts and Information

Misconception. Steroids can’t hurt me because I am young.

Anabolic Steroids, or performance enhancing drugs, can give an individual a competitive advantage or can help individuals build up their bodies so they look really good. Steroids are sold at gyms, competitions, and on-line. The side effects are many and include elevated blood pressure and cholesterol levels, severe acne, premature balding, reduced sexual function, and shrinking of testicles. In males, abnormal breast development can occur as well as infertility. In females, a masculinizing effect including increased body hair, smaller breasts, and fewer menstrual cycles can result. For teenagers, stunted growth may occur and for some individuals, using steroids may result in feelings of hostility and violent behavior. Steroids can also cause cancer, liver and kidney damage, heart attack, and stroke. Steroids are addictive and users risk infection.

Misconception: Ecstasy is a new, safe drug that is neither addictive nor deadly.

Ecstasy has been manufactured since 1912 and investigated since the 1980s. It is often mixed with other drugs such as stimulants (ephedrine), cough suppressants (dextromethorphan), or even anesthetics (ketamine) as well as cocaine, caffeine, and methamphetamine, all of which cause additional risk. Because it is mixed with other drugs, it can be especially deadly since the user doesn’t know what he or she is taking. Effects: Use of ecstasy can result in anxiety, irritability, aggression, reduced interest in sex, reduced mental abilities. Overdoses have resulted in heart failure, kidney failure, loss of consciousness, seizures, and death.

Misconception. Inhalants are not drugs. They are harmless play for kids.

Inhalants are common household substances that are sniffed or huffed to give the user an immediate head rush. Substances include paint thinner, glue, fingernail polish remover, lighter fluid, hair spray, or cleaning solvents. Stimulation is usually followed by a headache and often by hallucinations. Because inhalants are so quickly absorbed, they can cause irreversible damage before the user knows what’s happening. Inhalants can induce heart failure and death due to suffocation by displacing oxygen in the lungs. Suffocation can occur the very first time a person uses an inhalant.

Misconception: When I take Methamphetamine, I only hurt myself.

Methamphetamine is a highly addictive stimulant closely related to amphetamines but has a longer lasting toxic effect on the central nervous system. The users’ experience of euphoria can be maintained only by continuing to take more of the substance. Short term effects can include aggressive behavior, increased blood pressure, and loss of appetite. Effects of long-term use include depression, hallucinations, and stroke. Methamphetamine has been linked to risky sexual behavior and HIV infection. Extended use can result in kidney and lung disease, brain damage, and mental disorder. Damage to the environment is also extensive because toxic chemicals are used to manufacture this drug. These chemicals are then dumped without safeguards into the environment. The houses in which these labs operate are uninhabitable and must be torn down and the materials disposed of appropriately.

Misconception. Heroin is no worse than any other drug.

Heroin is an opiate narcotic derived from morphine. It is the most abused of the opiates and the most addictive because it enters the brain so quickly, producing the rush or high that addicts desire. Immediate side effects include nausea, vomiting, and drowsiness. Sudden withdrawal by addicts can be fatal and must be monitored and treated with other drugs. Long term side effects include scarred veins, kidney disease, lung complications, and infections. Most recently, heroin mixed with fentanyl has been responsible for hundreds of deaths in eight states. Cook County has reported 87 deaths since spring of 2005, 60 of which were in Chicago. A network of law enforcement agencies including health officials, EMS agencies, and chemists have joined in a task force to get ahead of this development. Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that was developed for the relief of pain. In its simplest form it is 80 times more powerful than morphine, but in its more advanced analgesic form, Sufenta, it can be hundreds of times more powerful. Just a little too much can shut down the central nervous system and result in death. Signs of overdose include trouble breathing or swallowing, extreme sleepiness, inability to talk normally, dizziness, and confusion. Typically used to treat patients with serious pain such as those with chronic pain, terminal cancer or for surgery, when mixed with other drugs such as heroin or cocaine the potential danger is increased substantially.

Misconception: People who die from drug-related deaths deserve what they get and will not be missed.

Samantha Reid died from the date rape drug, GHB, which someone had slipped her. Hazel Brewer, a Lombard mother of four children, ages 21 to 4, entered several detox programs but died from a heroin/fentenyl combination at age 39. Joseph Krecker, the son of a Franklin Park Deputy Chief, Jack Krecker, died of a similar combination at age 17. Craig Lee, who also tried to stop his heroin addiction, died from a fatal combination of heroin and fentanyl at age 45. David Manlove joined a detox program to overcome a heroin addiction and succeeded, straightened out his life, but the addiction continued to draw him on. One day he and a friend chose a computer dusting inhalant since it would be undetecteable in David’s regular drug testing. To intensify the experience, he went huffing under water where he had a heart attack and drowned. People never set out to become addicts; but when addiction takes control, they are no longer in charge until they learn some new skills. Addiction, like alcohol, has physical, emotional, and psychological components. Just like an alcoholic, an addict must say no every day; and addiction is just too powerful for some.

Misconception: The use of cocaine is punishment enough for a user. Leave users alone.

Cocaine addicts will do whatever is needed to maintain their habit. Punishment goes far beyond the addict. When you look at the crack den in the exhibit, you realize that users lead dangerous and violent lives, and their children often get swept up in their lives. Cocaine is a stimulant derived from the coca plant. The user first feels energetic and powerful, then depressed and edgy. To avoid the depression, he must feed the habit daily; consequently, cocaine is highly addictive. Cocaine use often results in violence, car crashes, falls, burning, and drowning. Users often become aggressive and take risks. Even moderate use of cocaine can lead to increased heart and respiratory rates, dizziness, anxiety, delusions, heart attacks, strokes, seizures, and paranoia. Mixed with alcohol, cocaine increases the risk of sudden death.

Misconception: Prescription drugs are less harmful than illegal drugs.

Prescription drugs are among the most abused medicines used today. It is estimated that almost 30 million people used prescription drugs non-medically in 2002; and of those, 1.5 million were dependent on them. Teenagers especially participate in Robotripping and Pharming. The three most common drugs abused are opioids, depressants, and stimulants.

Opioids: Highly addictive, cause drowsiness, depressed breathing, dangerous interactions with other drugs; a single, large dose can cause respiratory failure and death.

Examples: Oxycontin, Hydrocodone,

Depressants: Addictive. When combined with prescription pain medications, allergy medicines, or alcohol, can be fatal. Examples: Valium, Xanax

Stimulants: Highly addictive. Can slow breathing, cause paranoia, irregular heart beat, cardiovascular failure. Examples: Ritalin, Adderall.

Drugs of Abuse: Uses and Effects (PDF)