The Hard Facts About Cocaine
Both a stimulant and an appetite suppressant, cocaine is a powerful and highly addictive drug that remains popular as a recreational substance even though nonmedical use is outlawed in virtually all nations.
Indigenous peoples of South America have been known to chew the coca leaf – from which cocaine is derived – for thousands of years, but the scientific isolation of the cocaine alkaloid did not occur until the late 1800s. The drug was used for a variety of medical and therapeutic purposes into the early part of the twentieth century, when it was outlawed.
Pure cocaine was first extracted from the leaf of the Erythroxylon coca bush, which grows primarily in Peru and Bolivia, in the mid-19th century. After the turn of the century, it was used in the majority of the tonics and elixirs that were marketed as treatments for myriad illnesses and conditions. Today, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency classifies cocaine is a Schedule II drug, meaning that it has high potential for abuse, but it can legally be administered by a doctor for legitimate medical purposes, such as its employment as a local anesthetic for patients who are undergoing certain types of eye, ear, or throat surgeries.
Experts have estimated that the illegal sale cocaine in the United States alone totals makes the distribution of the drug a $70 billion industry. It is used among a wide range of socioeconomic groups, as is evidenced by the popularity of “crack” in poverty-stricken areas and the prevalence of higher-priced powder cocaine in more affluent areas.
The two primary chemical forms of cocaine are hydrochloride salt and “freebase.”
- The hydrochloride salt, or powdered form, dissolves in water and can be ingested via either injection or snorting.
- The freebase form, which refers to a compound that has not been neutralized by an acid, is abused by smoking it.
Street dealers often dilute cocaine by “cutting” it with relatively benign substances such as cornstarch, talcum powder, sugar; or with such active drugs as procaine (a chemically-related local anesthetic); or with such other stimulants, including amphetamines.
During the 1980s, a low-priced and highly powerful form of cocaine known as “crack” or “rock” appeared on the street. This version is produced by processing powder cocaine with ammonia or sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) and water, and heated to remove the hydrochloride.
As with freebase, crack cocaine is usually smoked, and provides the user with an immediate, intense, and short-lasting high. This brief euphoria is often followed by irritability, extreme fatigue, paranoia, and – especially in the cases of chronic users – a deterioration in mental acuity, emotional stability, and physical health.
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