Drug dependence
The terms addiction and habituation have been almost as controversial as the conditions they describe. Uncertainties over the definitions of these words have plagued scientists, sociologists, legislators, and theologians for years. The term addiction, for instance, acquired a sociological significance with which scientists, particularly, are reluctant to deal. Drug addiction came to have an evil connotation, more definitive of public mores and attitudes toward a substance than of the capacity of that substance to induce disorders of behavior. The Expert Committee on Addiction-Producing Drugs of the World Health Organization made several attempts to solve some of the semantic problems peculiar to the terms addiction and habituation. In 1957, they defined the two terms as follows:
Drug addiction is a state of periodic or chrOnic intoxication produced by the repeated consumption of a drug (natural or synthetic). Its characteristics include
1.an overpowering desire or need (compulsion) to continue taking the drug and to obtain it by any means;
2.a tendency to increase the dose;
3.a psychic (psychological) and generally a physical dependence on the effects of the drug;
4.a detrimental effect on the individual and on society. Pass a drug test
Drug habituation (or habit) is a condition resulting from the repeated consumption of a drug. Its characteristics include:
1.a desire (but not a compulsion) to continue taking the drug for the sense of improved well-being which it engenders;
2.little or no tendency to increase the dose;
3.some degree of psychic dependence on the effects of the
drug, but absence of physical dependence and hence of an abstinence syndrome;
4. detrimental effects, if any, primarily on the individual.
In 1964, the WHO Expert Committee revised its recommendations and included a suggestion to replace the terms addiction and habituation with the expression drug dependence of a particular type in each specific case, that is “drug dependence of marihuana type” or “drug dependence of morphine type.” It was thought that dependence was a general term which described a common feature of all types of drug abuse. Furthermore, the term could be used without invoking or implying the social stigma which was attached to the old terms, particularly to addiction.?
Psychoactive drugs are usually classified into two broad categories:
Depressants. The depressants, which reduce mental and physical performance, include alcohol, barbiturates, anesthetics, and other sedative-hypnotic agents. Colloquially, depressants may be called “downers.” These compounds can cause loss of consciousness and complete loss of motor function. Dependence of the depressant type may not cause immediate overt antisocial behavior, but chronic abuse is always accompanied by physical dependence. Termination of the drug is characterized by a distinctive abstinence syndrome. Thus, drug dependence of morphine-type or alcohol-type leads to antisocial behavior indirectly. These materials are expensive, and the dependent subject, sooner or later, turns to crime to obtain the drug and to avert the compelling need brought on by withdrawal.
Stimulants. These compounds excite and enhance psychic function and increase motor activity. The groups include psychomotor stimulants such as the amphetamines. Hallucinogens are considered to be stimulants. A common property of this class is the capacity to induce psychotoxicity, distortion of perception, hallucinations, illusions and other disorders of behavior. The major difference between hallucinogens and psychomotor stimulants such as cocaine or amphetamine is one of dose; the latter require much larger doses to induce psychotic-like behavior.8 No physical dependence occurs with hallucinogenic drugs and there is no clearly defined abstinence syndrome. Nonorganic dependence, which may and often does occur, is a factor common to all forms of drug dependence.
One of the important characteristics of stimulants is that they, unlike “downers,” elicit antisocial behavior. Delusions, false bravery and extremes of perceptual distortion may occur, while physical capacities remain intact. Coupled with a loss of mental control, this condition often results in aggressive, if not violent, behavior. Here are some ways to naturally pass drug test
In the continuing effort to understand the mechanisms of drug action, the phenomena of tolerance and physical dependence have been rigorously investigated. Tolerance develops with chronic ingestion and modifies drug actions by reducing effectiveness. Most hallucinogens induce tolerance, but not physical dependence. A great deal of scientific and medical effort has been expended in the study of these two related, but independent, phenomena. Both conditions can be produced at will in the laboratory in either animals or man, and physical dependence can be effectively treated. Many hypotheses have been proposed over the years to explain the development of tolerance and physical dependence. Past and current theories, and the results of current investigative endeavors, have been reviewed in several recent articles 9-11 Despite the intensive concentration on these two drug-induced conditions, we do not understand the cellular mechanisms that determine their existence. However, the research is likely to continue because tolerance and physical dependence are considered to be the most important factors in ultimately understanding the conditioning and maintenance of drug-seeking behavior.