The World Health Organization defines substance abuse as “the harmful or
hazardous use of psychoactive substances, including alcohol and illicit drugs”.
The term ‘substance abuse’ is also related to taking a psychoactive drug or
performance enhancing drug for a non-therapeutic or non-medical effect (http:/issues.tigweb.org/substance).
The United Nations reports that around 185 million people globally over the
age of 15 were consuming drugs by the end of the 20th century. The most
commonly mentioned drugs were marijuana, cocaine, alcohol, Amphetamine-type
stimulants (ATS), opiates and volatile solvents. 1 in 5 teenagers report having
abused a prescription medication and over 2500 teenagers a day experiment with
prescription medications taken from the home. And earlier in 2002, the World
health Organization estimated that around 140 million people were alcohol
dependent and another 400 million suffered alcohol-related problems.
It is important to note that substance abuse is a problem that affects us
all differently but that holds the same consequences of harm, withdrawal from
the community, and even death, for all the lives it touches. Drug abuse
including alcohol may lead to health problems, social problems, morbidity,
injuries, unprotected sex, unwanted pregnancies, violence, deaths, motor vehicle accidents,
homicides, suicides, physical dependence or psychological addiction.
There is a high rate of suicide in alcoholics and drug abusers. The reasons
believed to cause the increased risk of suicide include the long-term abuse of
alcohol and drugs causing physiological distortion of brain chemistry as well
as the social isolation. Drug abuse, including alcohol and prescription drugs
can induce symptoms which resembles mental illness. This can occur both in the
intoxicated state and also during the withdrawal state.
These days, drugs can be found everywhere, and it may seem like everyone's
doing them. Lots of people are tempted by the excitement or escape that drugs
seem to offer. But learning the facts about drugs can help you see the risks of
chasing this excitement or escape. Many teens use drugs because they're
depressed or think drugs will help them.
Marijuana, while being the least harmful of all of
the illicit drugs, is still potentially lethal. Marijuana addicts believe that
it is seemingly impossible to fatally overdose on weed by just smoking it. But
this does diminish the potentially fatal risks of lung cancer, emphysema, and
other forms of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) caused by marijuana
smoke. While marijuana can be ingested without smoking it, thereby eliminating
these risks, there still remain negative physiological and psychological
consequences including damage to the reproductive system, the immune system,
and cognitive ability.
What happens to your brain when you abuse drugs?
Drugs are chemicals that tap
into the brain's communication system and disrupt the way nerve cells normally
send, receive, and process information. Nearly all drugs,
directly or indirectly, target the brain's reward system by flooding the
circuit with dopamine. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter present in regions of the
brain that control movement, emotion, motivation, and feelings of pleasure. The
over-stimulation of this system, which normally responds to natural behaviors
that are linked to survival (eating, spending time with loved ones, etc),
produces euphoric effects in response to the drugs. This reaction sets in
motion a pattern that "teaches" people to repeat the behavior of
abusing drugs.
As
a person continues to abuse drugs, the brain adapts to the overwhelming surges
in dopamine by producing less dopamine or by reducing the number of dopamine
receptors in the reward circuit. As a result, dopamine's impact on the reward
circuit is lessened, reducing the abuser's ability to enjoy the drugs and the
things that previously brought pleasure. This decrease compels those addicted
to drugs to keep abusing drugs in order to attempt to bring their dopamine
function back to normal. And, they may now require larger amounts of the drug
than they first did to achieve the dopamine high - an effect known as
tolerance.
Treatment for binge drinking
and other forms of substance abuse is critical for many around the world.
Behavioral interventions and medications exist that have helped many people
reduce, or discontinue, their substance abuse.
§ What
does the Bible say about doing drugs?
The Bible does not directly address any form of
illicit drug use. There are no express prohibitions against cocaine, heroin,
ecstacy (MDMA), or methamphetamines (Meth). There is no mention of marijuana,
cannabis, peyote, magic mushrooms, or acid (LSD). Nothing is said about
huffing, snorting, dropping, smoking, shooting, licking, or any other method of
ingestion. This is not to say, however, that recreational drug use is
permissible. On the contrary, there are several very clear biblical principles
that place drug use well outside the realm of acceptable behaviour.
To begin with, Christians are
under a universal mandate to respect and obey the laws of the land (Deuteronomy
17:2; Ecclesiastes 8:2-5; Matthew 22:21; 23:2-3; Romans 13:1-7; Titus 3:1; 1
Peter 2:13-17; 2 Peter 2:9-11). Heartfelt disdain for the law does not justify impunity
towards it, as our Lord Himself made clear. He instructed His disciples to
submit to the demands of d Pharisees (Matthew 23:1-36). Dutiful submission to
authority and patient perseverance even through unjust suffering and/or
perceived unfairness (1 Peter 2:18-23) is God’s high standard for us.
In many countries, it is against the law to consume psychoactive substances. In nearly all countries, it is against the law to sell alcohol and cigarettes to young people under the age of 18 years. Anything contrary is treated as a criminal case. That is why persons/businesses that contravene these laws are arrested, prosecuted, fined, and even shut down. The objective is to protect young people, especially teenagers, from harm.
Not only are we to submit to
authority for submission’s sake, born-again Christians are further constrained
by a mandate to live above reproach for the sake of the Gospel (1 Corinthians
10:32; 2 Corinthians 4:2; 6:3; Titus 2:1-8; 2 Peter 3:14). Needless to say,
criminality is highly reproachable.
In addition, the Bible enjoins us to protect our body (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).
"Don’t
you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you
and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you
with a high price. So you must honor God with your body".
Did God give us human bodies to
use and abuse as we like, or does He expect more? Our bodies were created in the image of God. They are a gift from
Heavenly Father to allow us to experience mortality and continue to become more
like Him.Our bodies are said to be a temple of the Holy Spirit, and we are called to take care of and honor God's temple. This knowledge influences the way we treat our bodies and how we feel
about Heavenly Father and ourselves. When we treat our bodies as temples of
God, we obtain physical, emotional, and spiritual blessings.
Quotes of the Week!
Ø
“Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and
whoever is deceived thereby is not wise” (Prov. 20:1)
Ø
"Look not thou upon the wine when it is red,
when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright. At the last, it
biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder. Thine eyes shall behold
strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things" (Prov.
23:31-33).
Acknowledgements:
1. www.biblestudytools.com
2. www.lds.org
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