Transcript Factors in Substance Abuse and Dependence

Developing Healthier
Behaviors
Nutrition
Fitness
Sleep
Substance Abuse
Healthy Alternatives
NUTRITION
Nutrition
• The process by which plants and animals consume
and utilize food. Foods provide us with the
nutrients we need for energy and building our
bodies (muscle, bone and other tissues).
• We are what we eat. What we consume is
converted by our bodies in muscle, bone, tissue,
and other bodily tissues.
• As many as one in three deaths due to cancer, and
other deaths due to heart disease, diabetes or
stroke are related to poor nutrition.
Nutrients
• Proteins: Organic molecules that comprise the basic building
blocks of body tissues. Excess protein is converted to fat.
• Carbohydrates: Organic compounds forming the structural parts
of plants that are important sources of nutrition for animals and
humans.
• Fats: Organic compounds that form the basis of fatty tissue of
animals, including humans (body fat), and is also found in some
plant materials. No more than 30% of our daily calorie intake
should come from fat. No more than 10% should be saturated
fats.
• Vitamins: Organic substances needed by the body in small
amounts to maintain essential bodily processes.
Obesity Facts
• Nearly 2 out of three 3 adults in the United States are
overweight…and about ¼ are obese.
• People in the United States eat more than 800 billion calories of
food per day. 200 billion more than is needed to maintain our
weight. The extra calories could feed a nation of 80 million people
(Germany).
• Weight control is difficult for many people as they often regain most
of the weight that they have lost.
• American Culture idealizes slender heroes and heroines. This can
lead to guilt and poor body image.
• Simply put, obesity is a major health risk.
Body Mass Index
Biological Factors and Obesity
• Biological factors such as heredity, adipose tissue,
and body metabolism can all contribute to obesity.
• Today, it is widely accepted that heredity plays a
central role in obesity.
• People with more adipose tissue than others feel
food-deprived earlier. This may be caused by more
fat-depletion signals being sent to the brain.
• The act of dieting can make it hard to lose additional
weight. Our bodies are designed to store fat, so
when we lose weight, our metabolic rates slow down.
Psychosocial Factors and Obesity
• Psychosocial factors such as observational learning,
stress, environmental cues, and emotional states
also play key roles in obesity.
• Children are exposed to thousands of food
commercials each year.
• Restaurants use larger dinner plates and portions to
attract business.
• Depression and anxiety can impede dieting and lead
to binge eating.
Eating Disorders
• Young women in the United States come of age in a
culture obsessed with thinness, especially thinness in
women. Eating disorders are not normal, and arise
from distorted eating behaviors that are grounded in
excessive dieting or the pursuit of unrealistic
standards of thinness.
• Eating disorders often develop during adolescence
and early adulthood.
• Eating disorders frequently set the stage for
depression.
Anorexia Nervosa
• Characterized by maintenance of an abnormally low
body weight, intense fear of weight gain, a distorted
body image, and, in females, lack of menstruation.
• As many as 1% of young women suffer from
anorexia.
• Women with anorexia may lose 25% or more of their
body weight in one year.
• The mortality rate is estimated at 5% to 8% over a 10
year period (usually due to emaciation or suicide).
Bulimia Nervosa
• Characterized by recurrent episodes of binge
eating followed by purging, and persistent
overconcern with body shape and weight.
• Similar to those with anorexia, bulimics tend
to hold perfectionistic views about body
shape and weight.
• Unlike those with anorexia, bulimics tend to
maintain a relatively normal body weight.
Causes of Eating Disorders
• The underlying causes of eating disorder are complex and
involve a variety of factors.
• Psychodynamic theorists suggest that anorexia represents a
female’s effort to revert to pubescence.
• Social-Cognitive theorists suggest that young women with
anorexia set unreasonable demands on themselves in the
pursuit of perfection.
• Sociocultural theorists look to the prevailing “role models” such
as Miss America (who, since 1922 has gained 2% in height and
lost 12% in weight).
• Biological/Genetic factors also play a role as eating disorders
tend to run in families and certain personality factors increase
the risk of developing an eating disorder.
FITNESS
Two Major Types of Exercise
• Aerobic Exercise: Exercise that requires
sustained increase in oxygen consumption,
such as jogging, swimming, or riding a
bicycle.
• Anaerobic Exercise: Exercise that does not
require sustained increase in oxygen
consumption, such as weightlifting.
Major Physical Benefits of Exercise
• Fitness: The ability to perform physically
demanding tasks without undue fatigue.
Cardiovascular fitness refers to the ability of
the heart and lungs to function under stress.
• Regular fitness can also reduce hypertension,
reduce risk of heart attacks and strokes and
change the shape and type cholesterolcarrying proteins in the blood.
Causes of Death and Distance
Walked in Miles Per Day…
Exercise and Risk of Heart Attack
Major Psychological Benefits of
Exercise
• Exercise has been demonstrated to help
alleviate depression, a psychological disorder
characterized by inactivity, dampened mood,
and feelings of helplessness.
• Exercise has also been shown to decrease
anxiety and hostility and to boost self-esteem.
SLEEP
Why Do We Sleep?
• Restoration: Sleep serves a restorative
function by helping to rejuvenate a tired body.
It may also allow the brain to consolidate
memories of daily experiences.
• Survival: Sleep also may serve a survival
function by keeping us from roaming in the
night when our senses aren’t as sharp as
those of a potential predator.
What If I Can’t Sleep?
• Insomnia: A disorder characterized by persistent
difficulty falling asleep or remaining asleep.
• According to the National Sleep Foundation, more
than half of Americans are affected by insomnia in a
given year.
• Insomnia is caused by many factors such as pain or
physical disorders, mental disorders such as anxiety
and mood disorders, or substance abuse.
Substance Abuse
Substance Abuse and
Dependence
• Substance abuse: continued use of a
substance despite knowledge that it is
dangerous or that it is linked to social,
occupational, psychological, or physical
problems.
• Substance dependence: dependence is
shown by signs such as persistent use
despite efforts to cut down, marked tolerance,
and withdrawal symptoms.
Factors in Substance Abuse and
Dependence
• Substance abuse and dependence
usually begin with experimental use in
adolescence.
• Drug-use patterns established during
adolescence foreshadow future
substance abuse problems.
Factors in Substance Abuse and
Dependence (cont.)
• Psychological Factors: 1. expectations about
the effects of a substance are powerful
predictors of its use. 2. Parents might be
modeling drug-usage to their children and 3.
Usage of a drug many be reinforced by
peers.
• Biological Factors: Certain people may have
a genetic predisposition toward developing
substance dependence problems.
Depressants
• Depressant: A drug that decreases the
rate of activity of the central nervous
system. Common depressants include:
• Alcohol
• Opioids
• Sedatives
Effects of Alcohol
• The effects of alcohol vary with the dose and the
duration of use. Minor usage may be mildly
stimulating while higher doses will have a relaxing or
sedating effect.
• Alcohol relaxes people, deadens minor pain, impairs
cognitive functioning, slurs speech and reduces
motor coordination.
• Due to increased inhibitions, drinkers may do things
that they normally wouldn’t (such as engage in sexual
activity on the first date).
Alcoholism, Gender and
Ethnicity
• Alcoholism: A term used to describe alcohol
dependence, which is characterized by impaired
control over the use of alcohol and development of a
physiological dependence on the drug.
• Men are much more likely than women to develop
alcoholism.
• Native Americans and Irish Americans have the
highest rates of alcoholism in the United States while
Jewish Americans have relatively low rates.
Alcohol and Health
• While alcohol is responsible for more than 100,000
deaths in the United States each year (mostly due to
motor vehicle accidents and liver disease), light to
moderate drinking is associated with a lower risk of
heart attacks, and strokes, and a lower overall death
rate.
• Investigators believe that alcohol increases levels of
high-density lipoprotein (HDL cholesterol). Alcohol
may also decrease the risk of alzheimer’s (small
amounts of alcohol may help maintain a healthful flow
of blood to the brain).
• However, these benefits disappear when people drink
heavily.
Treating Alcoholism
• Many treatment approaches are available to aid
people who suffer from alcoholism.
• The most widely used program is Alcoholics
Anonymous which utilizes a 12-step program.
• However, Cognitive-behavioral therapy and
motivational enhancement therapy have been shown
to be equally as effective as Alcoholics Anonymous.
• Research is also investigating the use of medications
in the treatment of alcoholism.
OPIOIDS
• Opioids are a group of depressants derived from the
opium poppy, that are used to relieve pain but than
can also provide a euphoric rush.
• Opioids are classified as a Narcotic. Narcotics have
pain-relieving and sleep-inducing properties and
strong addictive potential.
• Common Opioids are Morphine and Heroin.
• Addiction is often treated with a combination of
Methadone and psychological treatment.
Barbiturates and Methaqualone
• Barbiturates are used to relieve anxiety or induce
sleep, but lead to quick addiction. The effects of
methaqualone are similar to those of barbiturates.
• Both barbiturates and methaqualone are popular as
street drugs but high doses lead to motor impairment,
slurred speech, irritability and poor judgment.
• Withdrawal symptoms include severe convulsions.
• It is dangerous to mix alcohol with these depressants.
STIMULANTS
• A stimulant is a drug that increases the
rate of activity of the central nervous
system. Common stimulants include:
• Nicotine
• Amphetamines
• Cocaine
Nicotine
• Nicotine is a mild, but highly addictive
stimulant drug found in tobacco.
• When dependence develops, smokers
experience withdrawal symptoms such as
nervousness, drowsiness, headaches,
irregular bowel movements, insomnia,
dizziness, cramps, palpitations, tremors and
sweating.
Perils of Smoking
• Smoking causes 430,000 deaths in the
United States each year. This is the
equivalent to two jumbo jets colliding in midair every day and all passengers dying.
• While smoking has decreased from 40% of
adults in the mid-1960s to 25% in recent
years, it has increased amongst young
women, African Americans and eight-twelfth
graders.
Who Smokes?
More Perils of Smoking
• Nicotine is not the most dangerous aspect of smoking. Carbon
monoxide and tars are responsible for decreased oxygen in the
blood and the development of lung cancer.
• Cigarette smoking causes death due to heart disease, chronic
lung and respiratory diseases, lung cancer and other problems.
• Pregnant women who smoke have a higher risk of miscarriage,
preterm births, low-birthweight babies, and stillborn babies.
• Passive Smoking (inhaling smoke from another’s tobacco
product) is also connected with respiratory illnesses, asthma,
and other health problems. Prolonged exposure to secondhand smoke as child is a risk factor for lung cancer.
Amphetamines
• Amphetamines are a class of stimulant drugs which can
increase states of alertness and induce pleasurable feelings.
• Amphetamines were first used during WWII to help soldiers
remain alert at night.
• Also called speed, uppers, bennies, and dexies. Amphetamines
can provide a euphoric rush.
• Recent evidence suggests that regular use of
methamphetamine can lead to physiological dependence.
• Heavy usage of methamphetamines can lead to cognitive and
emotional problems, and possibly to neurological damage.
Cocaine
• Cocaine is a powerful stimulant that produces feelings of
euphoria and can curb hunger and pain.
• Cocaine can be brewed from coca leaves as a tea, snorted in
powder form, or injected in liquid form.
• Snorting causes vasoconstriction and if repeated over time, can
lead to deterioration of nasal cartilage.
• Cocaine is highly addictive and withdrawal symptoms include
intense cravings for the drug, depressed mode and failure to
experience pleasure from ordinary activities.
• Cocaine is quite dangerous as it stimulates sudden rises in
blood pressure, constricts the coronary arteries and thickens the
blood. Overdoses may result in respiratory and cardiovascular
collapse.
Hallucinogens
• Hallucinogens are drugs that induce
sensory distortions and hallucinations.
Common Hallucinogens include:
• LSD
• Marijuana
LSD (Lysergic Acid Diethylamide)
• LSD produces vivid and colorful hallucinations known
as “trips”.
• Some LSD users experience flashbacks, that are
distorted perceptions or hallucinations that mimic the
LSD “trip” but occur days, weeks or longer after
usage.
• High doses may induce frightening hallucinations,
impaired coordination, poor judgment, mood
changes, and paranoid delusions.
Marijuana
•
Marijuana is the most widely used illicit drug in the United States with
one in three US residents aged 12-50 reporting having used marijuana
at least once in their lives.
•
Marijuana can induce feelings of relaxation, elevate mood, and produce
mild hallucinations.
•
Marijuana may have some legitimate medical uses such as reducing
eye pressure in glaucoma patients or curbing vomiting in chemotherapy
patients.
•
People can become psychologically addicted, and recent research
suggests that regular users may experience signs of physiological
dependence.
•
Research also suggests that marijuana may interfere with memory,
impair learning ability and lead to smaller brains in males who began
using marijuana before age 17.
Healthful
Alternatives
Finding Healthful Alternatives
• At times, we all feel depressed, tense, or
bored. Some feel inadequate to face the
challenges of life while others see their future
as bleak and unrewarding.
• We all have these feelings every now and
then. Do we turn to drugs to provide magical
answers or do we seek healthy alternatives?
If you smoke….
…What keeps you from doing this?
To the Instructor:
• The preceding slides are intended to provide
you a base upon which to build your
presentation for Chapter 5 of Nevid’s
Psychology and the Challenges of Life.
• For further student and instructor resources
including images from the textbook, quizzes,
flashcard activities and e-Grade plus, please
visit our website: www.wiley.com/college/nevid
Copyright
Copyright 2004 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York,
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