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15 consequences of drug use (in your mind and in your body)

15 consequences of drug use (in your mind and in your body)

February 29, 2024

Drug use is usually associated with the youngest or marginalized people; However, psychoactive substances are consumed by people of very different profiles and of different ages.

Currently there are many types of drugs (you can know in this article "Types of drugs: know their characteristics and effects"), and that produce different effects for our body. But the consumption of these substances is not something recent, as there is knowledge that in ancestral times some psychoactive substances such as peyote were already used. That yes, in spite of the traditional of its use, its effects are not always benign. In this article we will see the main consequences of drug use , and we will focus on the most popular substances.


Negative consequences of drug use

Drugs can produce different pleasant, exciting and even hallucinogenic effects, but their consumption also causes serious consequences for the health of consumers and for their social functioning.

Below you can see some sequels that the drug can leave on the habitual consumers.

1. Neurochemical imbalances in the brain

A study conducted by Volkow in 2003 observed, thanks to neuroimaging studies, that drug consumption produces permanent neurochemical and functional changes in the brain of addicts. The consumption of psychoactive substances causes the massive release of some neurotransmitters such as dopamine or serotonin that both short-term and long-term usually have consequences at the brain level. At the functional level problems can also occur due to the neurochemical imbalance that occurs, for example in reference to motivation, memory and cognitive control.


In addition, as a result of drug use, synapses are also altered. Studies suggest that, especially in the case of glutamate, the connections between neurons can be modified. Neuronal loss also occurs , general axonal damage, neurodegenerative problems, decrease of glial fibrillary acidic proteins and other consequences that directly affect the brain.

2. Altered mood

Mood alterations are frequent with drug use. Not only in the long term, but also in the short term, which means that a person can go from being relaxed to feeling irritated and aggressive very frequently.

This is especially noteworthy in the hours after drug use or when craving has a more pronounced effect . In the long term the personality of many people can be altered with the consumption of psychoactive substances.


3. Family, relational and social problems

Problems at the family level are quite frequent regardless of the type of drugs consumed. Of course, with tobacco use it is unlikely that a family will separate, but it is for the consumption of alcohol or other hard drugs like cocaine.

Social problems can also occur when a person is a habitual consumer of these substances, being able to lose friendships and even work . The person who uses drugs may show a loss of interest in their hobbies and other favorite activities. Economic problems are also associated with drug addiction behavior.

4. Addiction

Addiction is one of the consequences of drug use, and that is what leads people to return to consume these substances that cause an initially pleasant effect on the nervous system. The drugs Significantly affect the brain reward system , that is involved in pleasurable behaviors (for example, sex) and that the brain makes sure that we repeat again due to its survival function.

In the case of hard drugs, this addiction can cause a person to do what he can to get the substance he wants. For example, stealing or having sex for money or for a dose.

  • Related article: "The 10 most addictive drugs in the world"

5. Cardiovascular problems

Cardiovascular problems are common with prolonged use of the vast majority of drugs, as these substances alter normal heart function . While some drugs cause a very high activity of this organ, others do the opposite. In both cases there is a variation in blood pressure. Abusing drugs can lead to heart attacks, infections in blood vessels and other cardiovascular problems.

6. Defects in pregnancy

Drug use in pregnant women has been linked to premature and underdeveloped babies , because the abuse of psychoactive substances deteriorates the health of both the mother and the child.Scientific studies show that the abuse of drugs by the mother are related to withdrawal symptoms in the baby, birth defects, learning and behavioral problems, among other negative consequences.

7. Sexual dysfunction

The consumption of drugs can cause both acute and prolonged erectile dysfunction . This was verified by the Andalusian Institute of Sexology and Psychology. For their study, the researchers checked the consequences at a sexual level of 1,007 men, with the participation of 28 treatment centers for drug addicts spread throughout Spain.

Most of these subjects had used cocaine in isolation (50.92%) or combined with alcohol (11.14%) or heroin (8.65%). The rest of subjects consumed: alcohol (12.54%), heroin (4.97%), cannabis (2.38%), stimulant drugs (1.73%), depressant drugs (0.43%), and combination of 3 or more substances (7.24%). The results seem to confirm that men who have been users of addictive substances have erectile dysfunction in a higher percentage (20.84% ​​more) than men who do not take drugs.

8. Weakening of the immune system

Studies show that most drugs weaken the immune system. Many drugs such as opiates that work as analgesics, cannabis, etc; cause a series of negative reactions in the immune system, causing consumers to be more susceptible to diseases and infections of all kinds . This can manifest with simple colds or with more serious problems. Some studies suggest, for example, that cannabis use causes a greater susceptibility to cancer.

The behaviors associated with drug use, in addition, can cause other diseases, for example, AIDS or Hepatitis in the case of injecting heroin, and lead to reckless behavior that can cause other types of harmful consequences such as accidents.

9. Respiratory problems

Drug use causes increased risk of suffering respiratory diseases such as pneumonia . Side effects of some drugs include chest and lung pains or respiratory depression. In addition, the consumption of drugs such as tobacco or cocaine can cause serious lung health problems.

10. Antisocial behavior

Drug abuse, as I said, makes consumers stop practicing activities that they enjoyed before, in addition to having problems at work such as poor performance in their tasks and even their abandonment or dismissal.

In the case of young people, the performance in school or the abandonment of these is a more than evident manifestation of the consumption of this type of substances. Also, there is a close relationship between antisocial disorder and consumption of these substances as concluded by a study by Suelves and Sánchez-Turet.

  • Related article: "Antisocial Personality Disorder: causes, symptoms and treatment"

11. Isolation

Isolation can be a direct consequence of drug use. On the one hand, young people can isolate themselves from family or work, and in serious cases such as the use of heroin, the drug addict can isolate himself socially and even personally, leaving no concern for their physical appearance and hygiene. Consumers can live by and for the drug .

12. Anxiety and insomnia

The very usual that people who use drugs often suffer anxiety and sleep disturbances . In fact, some individuals recognize that they are unable to lie down without consuming marijuana once they get used to consuming marijuana before falling asleep. Drugs such as ecstasy or cocaine can alter the quality of sleep, generating nighttime anxiety or nightmares.

  • Maybe you're interested: "The 7 main sleep disorders"

13. Other psychological disorders

The problems of anxiety and insomnia are some of the psychological problems that drug users may experience. In other cases, they may also suffer more serious disorders such as schizophrenia or paranoid disorder . Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome, which is a brain disorder due to lack of vitamin B1 (also called thiamin), is usually associated with alcoholism.

14. Overdose

The use of drugs is dangerous and can cause irreparable damage to the health of the subjects who use these substances. There are many cases in which the doses consumed are excessive, which causes serious problems for the person. In some cases the overdose can simply make you have a hard time, cause nausea, vomiting, headache and even hallucinations (depending on the type of psychoactive substance).

15. Death

The symptoms of the overdose that I mentioned in the previous case are the less serious ones, but, in other situations, the overdose can lead to hospitalization of the patient, coma and even death . The data from the Report on the Situation of Drug Addiction in Spain submitted by the Government Delegation for the National Plan on Drugs to the Joint Congress-Senate Committee, concludes that in Spain there are about 800 deaths each year due to overdoses of substances Illegal


Your Brain on LSD and Acid (February 2024).


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