Informative Essay On Cocaine

One can feel the effects of cocaine almost immediately after use, with these effects lasting only a few minutes or hours. The duration of cocaine 's effects depends upon how it is administered. The faster the drug is absorbed, the more intense the high, but also the shorter the duration. The high from snorting is relatively slow to arrive but it may last 15 to 30 minutes. In contrast, the effects from smoking are more immediate but may last only 5 to 10 minutes. “In the brain, cocaine interferes with the chemical messengers -- neurotransmitters -- that nerves use to communicate with each other. Cocaine blocks norepinephrine, serotonin, dopamine, and other neurotransmitters from being reabsorbed. The resulting

Cocaine is one of the oldest, most powerful and most dangerous stimulants in the world. This powerfully addictive drug effects over 35 million people In the United States. Cocaine addiction prevents a person from being a productive member in our society. It also increases the cost for law enforcement and treatment facilities. It rapidly decreases the workplace, increases the homeless rate and needless deaths on a daily basis.

Cocaine (coke) is made from the Erythroxylon coca plant, a coca tree that grows high in the Andes Mountains of South America. The coca farmers' purpose is to pick and

Crack cocaine has been popular since the 1970s and mid 1980s. Crack cocaine is not a new drug; this drug is obtained from coca plant which grows mainly in South America. For many years, the native South American Indians chewed its leaves to develop strength and increased energy. By the 1800s, the cocaine was secluded from its leaves and used as a medicinal drug. By the late 1800s, it was used as an anesthetic and to avert surgical hemorrhage. The next century, people recognized crack cocaine an addictive narcotic and its non-medical use of the drug was ended by the Harrison Narcotics Act in 1914 (“How crack cocaine works?”).

From the third world of many South American countries, to the third street projects in the inner-city, to the third floor of a downtown luxury loft, cocaine is prevalent and being used. The business of the coca leaf is a billion dollar a year industry, if not more. Our foreign counterparts are profiting in full off of the drug. Mexico, Peru, and Colombia are some of the countries in Central and South America that are profiting and manufacturing cocaine.

The coca leaf does not yield the potency to deliver any type of overwhelming effect. The coca leaf in natural form gives the similar effect that a well caffeinated cup of coffee would (Arts and Entertainment Network). It wasn’t until Albert Niemann, a German scientist, extracted and processed the coca leaf ingredients, would it become a potent drug. In 1860, Niemann would rename the results of his extraction, cocaine (Arts and Entertainment Network).

The commodity chain of coca and cocaine began with the extraction of alkaloidal cocaine from the dried Andean coca leaf. This discovery by German doctoral student Albert Niemann would soon transform cocaine into a world drug commodity. Initially, cocaine was essential as a high-value medical commodity. Medical uses of cocaine included treatment of opiate addiction, hay fever, asthma, or other respiratory ailments. Cocaine’s greatest medical impact in the United States was as a local anesthetic during surgery. In Europe, cocaine’s commodity chain was defined by the coca elixir Vin Mariani developed by Corsican physician and chemist Angelo Mariani. Cultivated by Peruvian and Bolivian peasants living in the Andean Mountains, the coca leaf would be dried and shipped to the United States or Europe for refining. Due to the herb’s

Cocaine originated from South America, from coca leaves. Originally, the coca leaves were chewed by workers to decrease fatigue, improve endurance and have a greater resistance to the cold. This was to benefit the workers so they could work longer hours and be more productive. In 1855 the active ingredient in cocaine was isolated from the leaves, and in 1880 it was used as a local anesthetic (Nunes,2006). It was also used in coca cola. In 1855, coca cola was a soda beverage that contained sixty milligrams of cocaine for every eight ounces of the beverage. The idea behind this was to give people energy and a sense of well being (Nunes, 2006). By the late 1880s Sigmund Freud was using cocaine regularly and was even recommending it to others.

For short-term use, cocaine can provide extreme happiness, enhanced sensitivity to sound and touch or mental alertness. People takes cocaine as it can provide energy on their work but a long-term use of cocaine may lead to malnourishment, irritability, restlessness, paranoia and auditory hallucination (NIDA, 2016; Roncero, C., et al., 2013). Also, cocaine abuse may have other complications such as nosebleed because of snorting, difficulties in swallowing and easily infected by HIV or hepatitis C through needle injection and the misjudgment on having unsafe sex (NIDA, 2016). On the other hand, long-term use of cocaine may lead to addiction and a stronger dosage will be taken when they have any withdrawal symptoms. For instance, symptoms of depression, fatigue and increased appetite. Nowadays, still no medicines were approved for treating the addiction on cocaine and thus the treatment of cocaine addiction is

Organized Crime in the Americas”, an article written by Bruce Bagley has opened my eyes to

Cocaine’s mode of action has been shown to involve the dopamine receptors. This paper will discuss how cocaine affects dopamine receptors, the mode of addiction, how cocaine affects the frontal brain metabolic activities, as well as the role of excitatory amino acids in cocaine’s mechanism. I will also discuss how cocaine affects another system through its mechanism on the brain—the renin angiotensin system.

In quite a few lower-class communities, phrases like “your mom is a crack head,” or “shut up crack baby” are said jokingly to make fun of someone during what we call a “rip session.” Although said as a joke, some are very offended by the comments. Why? because for some, crack addiction hits too close to home for comfort. Seeing how easy it is obtained in lower class and poverty stricken neighborhoods, many find themselves falling victim to the powerful substance, crack cocaine. Low sociable economic systems are just one of the many factors that can lead to the use, and addiction of crack cocaine, others include movies, music, peer pressure, alcohol and cigarette ads. In this report I will discuss

Cocaine’s primary effect on the brain is to produce “psychoactive and addictive effects primarily by acting on the brain’s limbic system, a set of interconnected regions that regulate pleasure and motivation. Initial, short- term effect- a buildup of the neurochemical, dopamine which gives rise to euphoria and a desire to take the drug again”(Nestler, 2005, p.4). This is normally seen in some individuals that draw in the drug like through inhaling. It gives them an instant increase in blood, and brain levels. It causes the individual to become addicted to this substance. Cocaine is thought to produce pleasure/reward like any addicted drug

One of the most common drugs use across the nation is Cocaine. Cocaine is classified as a stimulant, which is a group of drugs that cause short-term increase in the mental or physical state. Cocaine has a rich, long history dated back hundreds of years. The native people of South America first used it; they used to chew on it. The natives introduced this drug to the Spaniards when they landed on the continent. This lead to the research of Coca leaves a few hundred years later in Europe. Scientists sought o isolate and name the compound. After it was isolated, it was used as an anesthetic and other medical purposes for a couple of years. It was a useful anesthetic for eye and nasal surgery. However, today, it has very limited anesthetic use.

Cocaine has been around since the 1880s the beginning of its popularity used by people who needed to get a quick high. The drug can be used by snorting, inhaling or injecting the liquid form into your veins. The two most common ways using cocaine are snorting and injecting, also known as “shooting” to common users. When cocaine is snorted it usually done laid out on a flat surface into a line and then taking a straw, dollar bill and sniffing firm through one nostril of your nose. It usually takes about fifteen to twenty minutes before the drug fully goes the blood stream getting you a high sensation. According to Drugs website, “Use of cocaine in a binge, during which the drug is taken repeatedly and at increasingly high doses, may lead to a state of increasing irritability, restlessness, and paranoia. This can result in a period of paranoid psychosis, in which the user loses touch with reality and experiences auditory hallucinations”. (drugs,