Transcript Slide 1

Health Risks
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Myth:
You have to use drugs for a long time before
drugs can really hurt you.
Fact:
Drugs can cause the brain to send the wrong
signals to the body. This can make a person stop
breathing, have a heart attack or go into a coma
-- even the first time a drug is used.
Health Risks
Myth:
It's okay to use marijuana as long as you're not a
chronic user or “stoner.”
Fact:
Even occasional use can cause attention and
memory impairment and can lead users to use
bad judgment or get into dangerous situations.
Occasional use can also lead to frequent use
causing even more damage.
Health Risks
Myth:
Smoking cigarettes rarely leads to taking drugs.
Fact:
Eighth graders who smoke cigarettes are three
times more likely to try illicit drugs than are
non-smokers, while those who smoke a pack a
day or more are nine times more likely. Similarly,
eighth graders who smoke cigarettes are twice as
likely to drink alcohol than are their nonsmoking
classmates.
Long-Term Effects
The effects of substance abuse can be felt on
many levels: on the individual, on friends and
family, and on society.
Long-Term Effects

On the Individual
Marijuana and alcohol interfere with motor control
and are factors in many automobile accidents.
 Sudden abstinence from certain drugs results in
withdrawal symptoms. For example, heroin
withdrawal can cause vomiting, muscle cramps,
convulsions, and delirium.
 Sharing hypodermic needles used to inject some
drugs dramatically increases the risk of contracting
AIDS and some types of hepatitis.
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Long-Term Effects

Effects on Society
In the workplace it is costly in terms of lost work
time and inefficiency.
 Over half of the highway deaths in the United States
involve alcohol.
 Drug-related crime can disrupt neighborhoods due
to violence among drug dealers, threats to residents,
and the crimes of the addicts themselves.
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Long-Term Effects

Effects on the Family
The user's preoccupation with the substance, plus its
effects on mood and performance, can lead to
marital problems and poor work performance or
dismissal.
 Pregnant women who acquire the AIDS virus
through intravenous drug use pass the virus to their
infant.
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Prevention

Early intervention.

Should address all forms of drug abuse.

Prevention should address type of drug abuse in
local community.
Prevention Planning

Family programs

School programs
Elementary
 Jr. High School
 High School
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Community