Drug Use and AbuseCRJ124NICCSara NelsonI IntroDrug use as well as drug abuse is constantly increasing. There is a widespread misunderstanding about drugs. Many believe that a drug is something that the government has declared is illegal to use or consume. However, this is not entirely true. A medicine is a chemical you take that affects how your body works. Alcohol, caffeine, aspirin and nicotine are all drugs. A drug must be able to pass from your body to your brain. Once inside your brain, medications can change the messages your brain cells send to each other and to the rest of your body. They do this by interfering with your brain's own chemical signals, which I'll talk about later in this article. I chose drug use as a topic because from my early years as a child, I remember someone in my life always being addicted to drugs. or use drugs. This is why I have seen many drug trends present on the streets, in schools and in our own homes. Having a child of my own, I made it my goal, like many others, to make sure my daughter knows right from wrong and says no! When I was in school, they didn't have drug awareness programs, didn't tell us much about drug use, and didn't even show us in our classes the war that America is facing in drug matters. Many fashions come and go. However, it seems like a fad has been around for far too long. Substance abuse, in any form, is very common in most populations.II LiteratureIn America, an estimated 12.8 million Americans use drugs. Of these 12.8 million, 6 percent of the population are children aged 12 and over. This number indicates the number of people who used drugs in the last 30 days. The... middle of paper ... release from pamine, or pleasure from the things they once did. The drug user can only experience pleasure if the drug is present in their body. This is how the brain of an addict or addict works. This lack of pleasure does not last forever. Through a period of detoxification, the person will regain these normal feelings of pleasure. However, many cannot last long enough to realize that the sensations return on their own after a while. http://www.helpguide.org/mental/drug_substance_abuse_addiction_signs_effects_treatment.htm http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/whoami/findoutmore/yourbrain/howdodrugsaffectyourbrain/whatisadrug.aspx http://www.drugabuse.gov/drugabuse/ emerging-trends https://www.ncjrs.gov/htm/chapter2.htm http://www.drugabuse.gov /sites/default/files/rrprescription.pdfhttp://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/ 846099/dr-drew-talks-teen-prescription-drug-abuse