B1.3 The use and abuse of drugs Flashcards Preview

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Flashcards in B1.3 The use and abuse of drugs Deck (42)
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1
Q

What do drugs change?

A

Your body chemistry

2
Q

What do changes in the body chemistry as a result of taking drugs lead to?

A

Becoming addicted to the drug

3
Q

What can addicts suffer if they do not take the drug?

A

Withdrawal symptoms

4
Q

What are the three types of drugs?

A

Medicinal, Recreational and Performance-Enhancing

5
Q

What are medicinal drugs?

A

Medicinally useful, e.g. antibiotics. For some a prescription is needed (e.g. morphine) but others not (e.g. paracetamol)

6
Q

What are recreational drugs used for?

A

Fun. These can be both legal (e.g. alcohol) or illegal (e.g. cannabis)

7
Q

What do performance-enhancing drugs do?

A

Improve a person’s performance in sport

8
Q

Name two types of performance enhancing drugs

A

Anabolic steroids and stimulants

9
Q

What do anabolic steroids do?

A

Increase muscle size

10
Q

What do stimulants do?

A

Increase heart rate

11
Q

What are the rules surrounding performance-enhancing drugs?

A

Some are illegal, some are prescription only, however all are banned by sporting bodies

12
Q

What is a negative health effect of steroids?

A

High blood pressurre

13
Q

What are the ethical arguments for performance enhancing drugs?

A
  1. Athletes can make their own decisions about whether the drug is worth the risk or not
  2. Drug-free is sport is no more fair, some athletes have access to better training facilities, coaches, equipment etc
14
Q

What are the ethical arguments against performance-enhancing drugs?

A
  1. it is unfair if people gain an advantage by taking the drugs
  2. Athletes may not have been informed of the serious health risks of the drugs they take
15
Q

What are statins?

A

Prescribed drugs that lower the risk of heart and circulatory disease

16
Q

What is there evidence of that statins lower?

A

Blood cholesterol and significantly lower the risk of heart disease in diabetic patients

17
Q

What is the first stage of drug testing?

A

Drugs are tested on human cells and tissues

18
Q

What is the second stage of drug testing?

A

Drugs are tested on live animals to find out about its toxicity and the best dosage

19
Q

What is the third stage of drug testing?

A

If successful with animals, the drug is tested on human volunteers in a clinical trial

20
Q

What is the fourth stage of drug testing?

A

The drug is tested on healthy volunteers, to test for side effects. A low dosage given at the start which is gradually increased

21
Q

What is the fifth stage of drug testing?

A

The drug is tested on patients who have the illness. The optimum dosage is found, the one most effective with the least side effects

22
Q

What is the sixth stage of drug testing?

A

the patients are put into two groups. One is given the drug and the other a placebo. So that the actual difference the drug makes can be seen, it allows for placebo effect

23
Q

What is a placebo?

A

A substance that is like the drug being tested but doesn’t do anything

24
Q

What is the placebo effect?

A

When the patient expects the treatment to work and so feels better, even though the treatment isn’t doing anythign

25
Q

What are clinical trails?

A

Blind, the patient doesn’t know whether they get the placebo or real drug

26
Q

What is a double blind clinical trial?

A

Neither the doctor nor the patient knows which is the drug or the placebo

27
Q

What do new drugs have to go through before being released for use?

A

Rigorous testing and clinical trials to ensure there a re no unexpected side effects etc

28
Q

What was Thalidomide intended as?

A

A sleeping pill

29
Q

What was Thalidomide found to also be effective against shortly after?

A

Morning sickness

30
Q

What side effects did thalidomide cause when used as a morning sickness pill?

A

Abnormal limb development and severe limb abnormalities of the fetus

31
Q

Why were these side effects not detected?

A

The drug had not been tested for morning sickness as it hadn’t been tested on pregnant women or for effects on the fetuses

32
Q

What happened to thalidomide after the side effects were discovered?

A

It was banned and went under more rigorous testing procedures which were brought in as a result

33
Q

What has Thalidomide now been discovered to treat?

A

Leprosy and other diseases

34
Q

What are heroin and cocaine?

A

Addictive

35
Q

What is cannabis?

A

Illegal, the chemicals in cannabis smoke can cause mental health problems in some

36
Q

What can the misuse of illegal substances such as ecstasy, heroin and cannabis lead to?

A

Heart and circularatory problems

37
Q

The overall impact of legal drugs is much greater than…

A

The impact of illegal drugs because far more people use them

38
Q

What do some consider cannabis as?

A

A gateway drug

39
Q

What are the negative effects of smoking?

A
  1. Disease of the heart, blood vessels and the lungs
  2. Cancer
  3. Nicotine is addictive so it is hard to stop smoking
40
Q

What are the negative effects of alcohol?

A
  1. It affects the nervous system and slows down the bodies reactions
  2. Causes impaired judgement, poor coordination and unconsciousness
  3. Liver disease and brain damage
  4. It is addictive
41
Q

What affects on the economy do many legal drugs have?

A

High costs due to crime, there are lost working days as a result often, the NHS spend a huge amount of money treating diseases as a result of these drugs

42
Q

What other effects do legal drugs have on society?

A

They cause sorrow and anguish to people affected by them, directly and indirectly