National Drug and Alcohol Facts Week
Observed this year from March 21st through the 27th. This week is meant to bring awareness and foster dialogues with youth and young adults about the science of using drugs and alcohol. This year we will be joining NIDA (National Institute on Drug Abuse) in sharing facts about drugs, alcohol, and addiction. We want to bring awareness to a significant issue and we hope our communities do as well! Follow the #ShatterTheMyths to be updated on events, education and resources about National Drug and Alcohol Facts Week.
Tobacco Facts
Tobacco is a plant grown for its leaves, which are dried and fermented before being put in tobacco products. A dangerous ingredient in tobacco is nicotine, which is addictive. People can smoke, sniff, and chew tobacco. A common tobacco product is cigarettes.
Smoking tobacco can cause serious health issues. A common health issue is lung cancer. In the United States, smoking cigarettes are linked to about 80% to 90% of lung cancer deaths. The myth is that smoking tobacco is only linked to lung cancer, but it is also linked to throat cancer, kidney cancer, ovarian cancer, nose cancer, and much more.
Chew or sniffing tobacco is still not safe due to the harmful chemicals found in tobacco. A harmful chemical in tobacco is tobacco-specific nitrosamines. High levels of these chemicals can lead to a greater risk of cancer. Smokeless tobacco is linked to mouth cancer, esophagus cancer, and pancreas cancer. Smokeless tobacco can also cause gum disease, tooth decay and tooth loss.
Tobacco Treatment
Smoke Free offers resources and tools for teens, women, veterans, Spanish speakers, and anyone else who wants help quitting smoking. Taking the journey to quit smoking will bring great benefits to a person’s body and mind.
- Brain
Quitting smoking can help rewire your brain and help the nicotine receptors in your brain return to normal levels about a month after quitting. - Head and Face
Quitting smoking can help your hearing, your vision, and help you keep a healthy mouth. - Heart
Quitting smoking can help lower your blood pressure, lower your cholesterol and can help in preventing blood clots. - Lungs
Quitting smoking helps stop lung damage, prevents emphysema, and your cilia will start to regrow and regain normal function.
Seeking treatment for tobacco related addictions can help individuals with their overall health. The benefits are immense and recovery is possible! Smoke free is a great first step in quitting smoking.
What the site offers:
- Helps you create a plan to quit
- Smoke free apps
- Education on quitting
- Smoke free text programs
- Free resources
- Connecting people with experts
Drug Facts
A drug is any substance that, when taken or administered in the body, has a physiological effect. There are seven general categories for drugs:
- Stimulants,
- Depressants
- Cannabinoids
- Psychedelics
- Opioids
- Dissociatives
- Empathogens
The chart below breaks down all the different substances and what categories they fall into.
Stimulants can cause euphoria, increased confidence, rapid heartbeat, reduced appetite, sexual arousal, mood swings, anxiety, and dehydration.
Depressants can cause euphoria, nausea, aggression, blackouts, sweating, confusion confidence, vomiting, dependency, mood swings, unconsciousness, coma, overdose, and death.
Opioids can cause euphoria, relaxation, pain relief, impaired concentration, sleepy, reduced sex drive, sweating, reduced fertility, constipation, heart & lung problems, and death.
Dissociatives can cause hallucinations (visual and auditory), panic, disconnected, bladder damage, feelings of safety, numbness, dependency, feelings of floating, and euphoria
Psychedelics can cause increased body temp, loss of coordination, hallucinations, distorted perceptions, disorganized thoughts, anxiety, paranoia, panic, and euphoria.
Cannabinoids can cause anxiety, dry mouth, paranoia, lack of motivation, loss of memory, mood swings, bloodshot eyes, relaxed, increased risk of psychosis and calmness.
Empathogens can cause a sense of belonging, overheat, anxious, mood swings, depression, dependency, risk of dehydration/hypo-hydration, erectile dysfunction, and isolation.
A common myth is that alcohol is not a drug, but it is. Alcohol is listed as a depressant drug, which slows down the messages traveling between the brain and the body. This is why people who consume alcohol tend to have issues walking in a straight line or forming coherent sentences. This drug can cause issues with coordination, issues with vision, increase aggressive behavior, impaired decision-making, and may have issues with blacking out. Like most drugs, over-consuming alcohol can lead to alcohol overdose and death.
Alcohol is one of the most used drugs in our world and impacts our communities in immense ways. The impact has caused alcohol use disorder to be the most common type of substance use disorder in the United States.
Drug Treatment
Next Level Recovery Indiana helps Hoosiers seek treatment for their alcohol use disorder. Alcohol is the most commonly abused and readily available drug in Indiana. There are many consequences to alcohol abuse in Indiana:
- Alcohol- related collisions
- Fatal crashes
- Removing children from their homes due to parental alcohol use
- Deaths
Recovery is possible for our communities, it is important this week that we continue to share resources and educate youth and young adults on facts about drugs and alcohol. Next Level Recovery is one of those resources. Hoosiers will have access to an addiction hotline, portal to find treatment centers in the state and other helpful resources.
Other treatment sites:
This Week’s Recommendation
Please, be wary that this week’s recommendations deal with topics that can be triggering. The topics can vary from overdose to drug and alcohol abuse. It is important to bring awareness to these topics, but it is also important to know one’s limitations and boundaries. Please, be safe and take caution in reading and watching these materials.
Beautiful Boy
Directed by Felix Van Groenigen
Trigger Warnings: Explicit scenes of substance use and overdose.
Based on the best-selling pair of memoirs from father and son David and Nic Sheff, Beautiful Boy chronicles the heartbreaking and inspiring experience of survival, relapse, and recovery in a family coping with addiction over many years.
The Revolution of Birdie Randolph
By Brandy Colbert
Trigger Warnings: Alcoholism, Alcohol (underage drinking), Assault (past, mentioned), Cancer, Death, Drug use, Racism, Sexual content
From Stonewall Award winner Brandy Colbert comes a novel about first love, family, and hidden secrets that will stay with you long after turning the last page.
