Drug Abuse: Taking Medications for Non-Therapeutic Reasons - Essay Sample

Introduction

In general, drugs are substances that are taken for both therapeutic and non-therapeutic purposes. Doctors prescribe most medications for medicinal use. However, when a drug is taken for other purposes other than therapeutic, then it is being abused. People abuse drugs mainly for recreational purposes. Some therapeutic drugs can be used for recreational purposes hence be abused. For example, cannabis has been found to have therapeutic advantages though it is mainly used for recreational tenacities. The standard drug consumed for recreational purposes includes alcohol and cigarettes.

Drugs are classified into different classes; one of them includes stimulant drugs. These are drugs that tend to make one remain active for a long time. One of the common stimulant and regal drug is coffee. Tobacco also falls in this class, and it is legal in many countries around the world. Illicit stimulants include Crack, amphetamines, and cocaine. The other category of drugs consists of the one that can soothe one's mind and makes them feel relaxed and be relieved from stress and anxiety. These drugs are also associated with their capability to induce sleep to someone. Such drugs fall in a class of depressant drugs. Alcohol is the famous legal depressant recreational drug others include tranquilizers and Barbiturates. Thirdly there are analgesics drugs; these are the ones that help in easing one's pain. They include opium, morphine, methadone, codeine, and heroin. Finally, the other drug class tends to disrupt an individual nerve cell; this class of drug is referred to as the hallucinogen. They include ecstasy, LSD, Magic mushroom, and cannabis. The use of illicit drugs is harmful to both humans and society at large this paper will discuss how these drugs harm the community and people who use them.

How Illicit Drugs are Harmful to Society

Crime Rate Increase

One of the factors associated with all drugs is an increase in the crime rate in a given community. Some of the factors related to the crime rate include poor judgment or drug-induced crime. Some of these crimes happen in clubs when people under the influence of alcohol tend to fight others. According to the bureau of justice statistics, 26 percent of victims of violence argued that offenders were under the control of drugs, 47 percent of these offenders were under the influence of alcohol (BJS, 1 2017). Without being under the power of the drug, one could not have been involved in the crime. Most drugs tend to influence an individual's behavioral nature and tend to make people more aggressive and easily annoyed, resulting in violence.

Additionally, the drug tends to influence crimes, especially among addicts and peddlers. Various drug cartels are killing each other over the operation of the areas as they focus on maximizing profit. For example, the Sinaloa cartels under the leadership of El Chapo Guzman killed hundreds of Mexican as they compete for the market of cocaine (Navarro, 2016). This cartel group brought insecurity to the society in Mexico as they focus on instilling fear among the people who wanted to go against their trade. Moreover, according to the Bureau of Justice and statistics (BJS), 17 percent of the state's prisoners and 18 percent of the federal prisoners indulged in crime looking for drug money. Furthermore, in the year 2007, 3.9 percent of homicides in the USA were drug-related. People have been encouraged to commit a crime due to the need for the money to purchase drugs while others are killing each other on the street as they focus one earning more from the drug.

Addiction Cost

The other way that drug consumption is affecting the society is through addiction. The addiction is when people cannot work without the drug in their blood system. Such a case happens when an individual has consumed a large percentage of particular. An addict's body has mitigated a drug as the new norm on their system. Common addictive drugs include alcohol, cigarettes, and cocaine. Drug addiction has a significant impact on society as people who could be otherwise productive without a prescription are forced to depend on drug use to work. The illicit drug abuse costs USA over $600 billion annually (NIH 2020, 1). Most of these costs include the expenditure on the addiction facilities centers, among others. Such a large amount of income could be used in other productive activities such as society's development. The organization has the responsibility to take care of addicted people, which is also a burden to them. Other addicts fail to deal with their duty as they channel most of their money on the drug purchase, and the responsibility is left to society. For example, drug-addicted parents might fail to provide the basic need of their children. Since children need support, they are either taken by a relative or by social support.

Productivity and Drug

The study done in 2019 showed that about 19 million people go to work while drunk. The population also comprises those who Drink at work and those who tend to participate in a work environment while they nurse the alcohol hangover (Veltrup, and John, 1 2020). Such a high number shows the tolerance of society and workers toward drug abuse even though everyone knows its impact on an individual. $200 billion is lost due to a decrease in the productivity of the people who go to work under the influence of the drugs or the ones who fail to come to work due to drugs (Veltrup, and John, 1 2020). People working with drug addicts have to work extra hard to accommodate their poor productivity. They also have to cover for someone who fails to show at the workplace due to their drug consumption behavior.

Moreover, people working under the influence of a drug are more likely to get work-related injuries. Such circumstances have resulted in a rise in insurance premiums passed from the employees to the workers. Under the influence of the drug, doctors have a higher possibility of prescribing the wrong medicine to a patient due to poor judgment. Employers are the ones who are at high risk since there is a likeliness of an organization to fail due to reduced productivity. Drug use is directly associated with the failure of many businesses; Small businesses are more impacted. The drug-addicted business owners are 25% less productive than there drug-free counterparts (Galea, & Ghodse, 2017 4). Finally, drug addicts are also less inventive and innovative, and they are less likely to notice a significant change in the market.

How Illicit Drug is Harmful to an Individual

Health Problems

One of the significant problems associated with drug abuse is its impact on individual health. Some health problems are acquired during drug consumption, while others are brought directly by the drug. One of the common health problems attained during the time of a drug consumption includes the one spread through the use of needle use. Such issues include Cross infection, HIV, Blood clots, Poisoning, Abscesses, among others. Other health problems include the ones that are attained as people share directly share a drug. For example, in case people share some drugs such as cigarettes, they are likely to spread the respiratory-related problems such as tuberculosis and pneumonia, among others.

Other problems include those directly associated with the consumption of a particular drug for a long time. For example, smoking drugs are related to many issues, including mouth cancer, throat cancer, heart disease, among others (Chow et al. 4 2017). On the other hand, depressant drugs are directly associated with liver Cirrhosis, obesity, and stomach ulcers. A short run cocaine consumption results in the loss of appetite and sleep deprivation. On the other hand, the longtime effect includes brain damage and cardiovascular problems and can also impair significant body organs such as kidney and liver. Finally, every illicit drug is addictive to the consumer, and beyond a certain level, they need the prescription for their body to function correctly. Some medications such as cocaine have severe addiction such that the user can murder to get a drug, and if they cannot get it, they can be depressed to the extent of committing suicide. Generally, every drug has a significant health effect on the user, depending on how long they consume it.

Poor Judgment

Poor judgment is one of the problems specifically related to the depressant class of drugs such as Tranquilizers. A poor experience may result in a wrong decision, especially in the line of duty or in other tasks that are more involved. For example, every country has strict rules against driving or operating a machine under the influence of alcohol. Moreover, one can misjudge a situation resulting in violence that can make them be hurt, or they can also damage other people.

According to the national survey of drug use, more than 9 million Americans aged above 16 years driving under the influence of alcohol every year(FRN 1 2014). People under the influence of alcohol have slower reaction times and pay less attention to the road. Moreover, the drug consumed impair motor skills and affect their balance and conditions. Generally, drivers under the influence of alcohol or any other illicit drug have higher chances of causing an accident. In 2019, 29 percent of fatal accidents were directly related to drunks driving (alcohol statistics, 2019, 1). Moreover, for every 100,000 people, three die of drug-related driving in the USA.

Financial Effect

Drugs are relatively expensive, depending on their sovereign state and their level of consumption. For illegal drugs, the drug price is directly proportional to the government's restriction. Therefore, if the government is firmly against a particular drug, then the drug price will be higher. Generally, with strict limits, there is a low supply and high demand hence the increase in price.

Figure 1: Trend in the Price of Heroin Drugs are Expensive

Due to such a high price, people have to spend more on drug consumption to satisfy their addiction or recreational urge. Sometimes the expenditure is higher than the one spent on regular goods and services. For example, in case one is a heroin drug addict, and they have to take one gram per day, they have to spend at least $400 per day. Therefore, in a month, they have to pay $12,000 for the drug. This is a high expenditure on an individual. Generally, the more one abuses a drug, the more they have to spend on the abuse, and this affects a person's financial future directly. Americans spend up to 150 million cash on the purchase of illicit drugs (Midgette & Kilmer 1, 2019). This is a high expenditure, especially when one considers that only a small population consumes these drugs.

Affects Individual Relationship

As pointed out, earlier illicit drugs make people violent to their spouses' friends and other relatives. People will always avoid such types of people for their peace of mind and the apparent need for harmonious co-existence with everyone. Additionally, some of the drugs make people be more dependent other than helping other people. For example, it is tough for drug addicts to retain their jobs since they are less productive. Hence once they lose their jobs, they will depend on others, and no one likes an entirely dependent individual. Thirdly, other drugs tend to affect one sex drive hence making them fail to satisfy their spouses. Such a factor fails in many relationships.

Other Personal Problems

There are many other problems related to the use and peddling of illicit drugs. For example, they can results in one's arrest, causing them to spend most of their time in prison. Other people can be forced to commit crimes as they look for drug money. Therefore, drug use can affect individua...