The Gateway Drug - 1517 Words

Naloxone: The Gateway Drug Classified as an antidote, naloxone gives individuals who overdose on opioids a second chance at life, but without access to proper treatment, these users will continue living in the cycle of addiction until either finding enough strength to pull through the recovery process or falling victim to life’s only certainty prematurely. In response to the ever-growing opioid epidemic in the United States, many elected officials, health-centered agencies and addiction support groups have been advocating for friends and family members to arm themselves with naloxone, an opioid antagonist commonly known as Narcan. Narcan (naloxone) can be given by intramuscular (IM) injection - into the muscle of the arm, thigh or buttocks - or with a nasal spray device (into the nose). If a person has taken opioids and is then given Narcan, the opioids will be knocked out of the opiate receptors in the brain. Narcan can help even if opioids are taken with alcohol or other drugs. According to The Opiate Antidote to Save a Life, â€Å"After a dose of Narcan the person should begin to breathe more normally and it will become easier to wake them. Brain damage can occur within only a few minutes of an opioid overdose as the result of a lack of oxygen to the brain.† Of course, Narcan does not reanimate corpses, but it does revive an individual who has stopped breathing after suffering an opioid overdose, enabling her to start breathing again. Loss of oxygen to the brain is howShow MoreRelatedMarijuana: A Boon or A Gateway Drug876 Words   |  4 Pagesis the most popular drug plant. These products often used for their psychoactive effects. This can include heightened mood or euphoria, relaxation, and an increase in appetite. Popularity of the marijuana has increased widely these days between all age groups. Smoker’s says, â€Å"There is no harm in smoking marijuana, as it is non-addictive, it relaxes your body and connects you to your soul whereas, non-smokers say, â€Å"There is no reason one should smoke it because it’s a gateway drug.† Those who have neverRead MoreGateway Drugs3897 Words   |  16 PagesGateway Drugs and Common Drug Abuse The oldest known written record of drug use is a clay tablet from the ancient Sumerian civilization of the Middle East. This tablet, made in the 2000 s B.C., lists about a dozen drug prescriptions. An Egyptian scroll from bout 1550 B.C. names more than 800 prescriptions containing about 700 drugs. The ancient Chinese, Greek and Romans also used many drugs. The Greeks and Romans used opium to relieve pain. The Egyptians used castor oil as a laxative. The ChineseRead MoreMarijuan The Gateway Drug1595 Words   |  7 PagesCannabis; the gateway drug to harder narcotics or mankind’s unused saviour? Is cannabis as bad as we are led to believe or is it an untapped natural resource that the higher powers refuse to acknowledge? Since 1928 cannabis has been illegal in the United Kingdom. However it is also the most extensively used drug within the UK. This naturally found plant is known around the world, mainly for giving its users a ‘high’ however what many people donâ €™t know is that this plant has also been tested andRead MoreMarijuana as a Gateway Drug2211 Words   |  9 PagesSociology 225 Research Paper Marijuana as a Gateway Drug The gateway theory is a hypothesis which states that the use of gateway drugs (alcohol, tobacco and marijuana) lead to the use of more illicit drugs such as heroin and cocaine. According to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), marijuana is a Schedule I substance under the Controlled Substances Act. â€Å"Schedule I drugs are classified as having a high potential for abuse, no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United StatesRead MoreMarijuana a Gateway Drug?906 Words   |  4 PagesMarijuana Is a Gateway Drug First time marijuana use will lead to harder drugs, creates health risks including HIV. Earleywine, M. (2004). Marijuana Is Not a Gateway to Other Addictive Drugs. Most marijuana users do not touch hard drugs. First time marijuana use does not mean an individual will use harder drugs because people will use whatever drug is available when they are ready to experiment. According to data from the 2000 National Household Surveys on Drug Abuse (NHSDA)Read MoreMarijuana Should Be Legal For Recreational Use873 Words   |  4 Pagesjustice related to drug disputes would be reduced resulting in less crowding in prisons. Revised: Legalizing marijuana will result in less crowding in prisons. Premise: States gain profit from taxing marijuana Revised: States benefit financially from the legalization of marijuana. Conclusion: Marijuana should be legal for recreational use. Marijuana has been used in herbal remedies for centuries. It has been assisting in chemotherapy treatments for years. Unlike the many man-made drugs on the streetsRead MoreHayden Hines. Prof. Hawk. Comp 2. 9 Am-9:50 Am. 5 May 2017.1040 Words   |  5 Pagesgiven 30+ years of prison time. A popular belief today is that marijuana should be categorized as a harsh drug that produces a health hazard and if caught with it, deserves a harsh penalty and should in most cases be considered a gateway drug. A gateway drug is something that people see as a drug that isn’t as hard-core as others, but using this drug may lead some to try even more dangerous drugs because eventually they will need something more intense than the high that marijuana gives them. WhileRead MoreUsing Marijuana for Medicinal Purposes562 Words   |  2 Pagesagainst marijuana is that they claim it is a gateway drug. People say people who use marijuana would later use harder drugs such as cocaine,meth,and heroin which is irrelevant.Just because some people that do harder drugs such as the 3 I named started off with using marijuana does not mean all people would do the harder drugs. If someone wanted to experiment with cocaine,meth,or heroin they are going to do it regardless. If anything the gateway drugs that are leading people to cocaine,meth, or heroinRead More Decriminalization of Marijuana in Canada Essays1352 Words   |  6 PagesMarijuana is currently a hot topic of debate throughout Canada, and has been for the past few years. Marijuana was first banned in 1923 under the Opium and Drug Act, but since 1997 the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act have controlled it. In 2000, over 30,000 Canadians were charged with possession of marijuana. Currently, the marijuana laws are not enforced equally across the country, which has prompted the interest in changing the laws or possibly decriminalizing marijuana. Also, those convictedRead MoreShould Marijuana Be Legalized?849 Words   |  4 P agesable to obtain marijuana with a doctor s recommendation. The new debate is whether marijuana should be legalized for the general public as a recreational drug. Although some believe that marijuana is harmless, and that it has beneficial medicinal uses, marijuana should not be legalized because it decreases one s motor skills, it is a gateway drug, furthermore, it negatively affects the minority population. First thing s first, some,some critics believe that marijuana has various practical uses;however