A number of recreational drugs and other substances, when overused or abused, can cause issues with addiction – a condition where an individual is unable to control use of the substance. The US is currently dealing with epidemic levels of substance abuse and addiction, a persistent and growing public health problem.
Many people believe that addiction is a result of the drugs themselves. However, the American Society of Addiction Medicine makes it clear that addiction results from the interaction of these substances with chemical pathways in the brain, resulting in physical and behavioral changes that are recognizable as addiction. Because of this distinction, addiction is considered to be a brain disease and categorized as a psychiatric disorder.
The most addictive substance
- Prescription opiates
Each of these substances interacts with the body in specific ways that can cause recognizable symptoms. Specifically, each of these drugs interacts with the brain’s dopamine system, described by Psychology Today as a chemical pathway that increases feelings of pleasure to a point of euphoria. This feeling is a major contributor to the attraction of drug use, and it is also potentially a major source of the brain’s potential to develop addiction.
Below, these drugs are described in depth, noting the symptoms that may occur if someone is abusing the drug.
List of Addictive Substances
Heroin is an illegal opioid drug, made from morphine, a product made from the seeds of the opium poppy. It is a well-known street drug that, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), can be snorted, injected, or smoked for a euphoric, then sedative effect.
Heroin affects the brain by slowing the body’s neurological responses, easing pain and creating a sense of wellbeing. However, it also suppresses a number of body functions, including heart rate, breathing, and cognitive response. Symptoms that may result from heroin addiction include:
- Inability to focus or confusion
- Slowed breathing and heart rate
- Bruising, needle marks, and collapsed veins (if injected)
- Constipation and stomach pain
- Infections, including pneumonia and HIV
- Liver or kidney problems
An overdose of heroin can result in respiratory failure and death. Anxiety and insomnia can occur if the person stops using for a time.
2. Prescription Opiates
Also extracted from or synthesized to resemble morphine, these drugs act on the body similarly to heroin. Unlike heroin, they are legal for medical use. WebMD describes some of the uses: providing help in controlling pain or sedating patients as a support to anesthesia for surgery. Some are also used to prevent coughing and can provide help with other medical conditions.
However, these prescriptions are often misused or abused for their euphoric properties, and they can result in similar physical and mental responses and addiction. Pills are taken orally, or they may be crushed and dissolved for injection.
Prescription opiates that are abused include, but are not limited to:
Symptoms of a prescription opiate problem are similar to those of heroin addiction. In addition, some signs that might be noted include multiple prescriptions from different doctors, running out of pills before expected, or missing or stolen pills from another person’s prescription.
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Benzodiazepines were developed for medical use to control certain mental conditions, such as anxiety or panic attacks, and physical conditions, like insomnia. They can even be used to help control seizures. As explained by the Center for Substance Abuse Research, these are some of the most commonly prescribed drugs around the world.
However, these nervous system depressants can also provide a euphoric effect, similar to that experienced with heroin or other opiate use, and they react in the brain in ways that can quickly result in addiction. As a result, they are also some of the most highly abused drugs, and they are considered to be a major element of the drug abuse e