2,005
24
Essay, 3 pages (650 words)

Cocaine

The Illegality and Common Uses of Cocaine The Illegality and Common Uses of Cocaine Cocaine is a highly addictive, illegal, compositionally complex drug that is obtained from the elusive coca plant. It derives its commonly used name from this plant along with ‘ ine’ as a reference to the fact that the drug is officially an alkaloid. Cocaine works as a powerful biological stimulant, anaesthetic and also has the effect of suppressing appetite in the user. Due to the extremely addictive nature of the drug and the fact that it is detrimental to the physiology of the user, cocaine is illegal all over the world although it is widely used despite this. Cocaine is also used legally under certain conditions and for very particular purposes.
Cocaine is highly illegal all over the world in terms of use, distribution, selling and possession. Crack cocaine is a “ Schedule II substance under the Controlled Substances Act… Schedule II drugs, which include PCP and methamphetamine, have a high potential for abuse [which may] lead to severe psychological or physical dependence. Excessive use of cocaine can cause a wide variety of problems for the user both temporary and immediate, and chronic” (National Drug Intelligence Center, 2003). It is the duty of society to protect citizens against dangers such as those brought about by highly dangerous chemicals and drugs. Hallucinations and paranoid delusions are extremely common symptoms of usage and prolonged use can be life threatening for reasons such as lack of sufficient nutrition caused by appetite suppression. Making the drug illegal attempts to reduce the use of the drug by the general populations and to encourage people to avoid it at all costs. Most countries go to great lengths to raise awareness of the potential dangers of using this type of drug but despite this and despite the illegality of it all over the world, it is very commonly used in personal recreation and by a wide range of social circles from the wealthy and famous, to the extremely poor.
Though the primary trend for using cocaine across the globe is certainly recreationally, there are several ways in which the drug is used legally in fields such as medicine. Due to the anaesthetic side effects of cocaine, it is often used as a topical anaesthetic in some surgeries such as nasal, throat and oral cavity reconstruction (Simmer, 2010). A special, highly diluted compound of the drug is commercially available in the United States in various formats such as crystals, which are designed for topical application to areas of pain or inflammation. Such use requires very particular doses as even the smallest amount can cause adverse effects. It is also used in analgesia as a superior spray which helps in the treatment of this condition.
More recent trends in cocaine uses within the medical field include suturing minor cuts and lesions upon a patients entrance to hospital emergency rooms. More controversially however, many studies have supported the use of cocaine in actually helping addicts to withdraw or recover from heroin addiction, another highly dangerous and addictive drug. Withdrawing from heroine is an extremely arduous process and cocaine has been shown to aid the process by acting as a comforter in terms of the physical pain felt. This trend has only just begun and is quite controversial in nature as many believe that the process is simply replacing one highly addictive drug for another which is a questionable activity though supported widely by professionals in the field.
Cocaine is illegal globally due to its highly addictive and life-threatening properties but despite this, it remains a widely used drug in personal recreation all over the world. Common uses of the drug other then personal recreation, center on medical areas such as anaesthesia and more recently, heroin withdrawal though this remains controversial.
References
National Drug Intelligence Center (2003). Is Crack Cocaine Illegal? In Crack Cocaine Fast Facts. Retrieved from: http://www. justice. gov/ndic/pubs3/3978/index. htm#illegal
Simmer, J. (2010). Topical Anaesthetics, Cocaine. In Medscape. Retrieved from: http://emedicine. medscape. com/article/874104-overview

Thank's for Your Vote!
Cocaine. Page 1
Cocaine. Page 2
Cocaine. Page 3
Cocaine. Page 4

This work, titled "Cocaine" was written and willingly shared by a fellow student. This sample can be utilized as a research and reference resource to aid in the writing of your own work. Any use of the work that does not include an appropriate citation is banned.

If you are the owner of this work and don’t want it to be published on AssignBuster, request its removal.

Request Removal
Cite this Essay

References

AssignBuster. (2022) 'Cocaine'. 9 January.

Reference

AssignBuster. (2022, January 9). Cocaine. Retrieved from https://assignbuster.com/cocaine/

References

AssignBuster. 2022. "Cocaine." January 9, 2022. https://assignbuster.com/cocaine/.

1. AssignBuster. "Cocaine." January 9, 2022. https://assignbuster.com/cocaine/.


Bibliography


AssignBuster. "Cocaine." January 9, 2022. https://assignbuster.com/cocaine/.

Work Cited

"Cocaine." AssignBuster, 9 Jan. 2022, assignbuster.com/cocaine/.

Get in Touch

Please, let us know if you have any ideas on improving Cocaine, or our service. We will be happy to hear what you think: [email protected]