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Common recreational drugs

[edit]
In a 2011 survey of experts, 19 common recreational drugs were ranked according to their personal and social harms.[1]

The following substances, all widely illegal unless stated otherwise, are here listed by order of world-wide popularity:[2]

alcohol
Most drinking alcohol is ethanol, CH
3CH
2OH, produced by the fermentation of sugars by yeasts to create wine, beer, and distilled liquor. In most areas of the world it is legal for those over a certain age (typically 18–21). It is an IARC 'Group 1' carcinogen and a teratogen.[3]
amphetamines
Prescribed for ADHD, narcolepsy, depression and weight loss. A potent central nervous system stimulant, in the 1940s and 50s methamphetamine was used by Axis and Allied troops in World War II, and, later on, other armies, and by Japanese factory workers. It increases muscle strength and fatigue resistance and improves reaction time.[4] Methamphetamine use can be neurotoxic, which means it damages dopamine neurons.[5] As a result of this brain damage, chronic use can lead to post acute withdrawal syndrome.[6]
cannabis
Its common forms include marijuana and hashish, which are smoked or eaten. It contains at least 85 cannabinoids. The primary psychoactive component is THC, which mimics the neurotransmitter anandamide, named after the Hindu ananda, "joy, bliss, delight." The review article Campbell & Gowran (2007) states that "manipulation of the cannabinoid system offers the potential to upregulate neuroprotective mechanisms while dampening neuroinflammation. Whether these properties will be beneficial in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease in the future is an exciting topic that undoubtedly warrants further investigation."
caffeine
A legal drug, often from coffee, tea, energy drinks, some soft drinks, and chocolate.
cocaine
It is available as a powder, which is insufflated or injected. A popular derivative, crack cocaine is typically smoked. When transformed into its freebase form, crack, the cocaine vapour may be inhaled directly. This is thought to increase bioavailability, but has also been found to be toxic, due to the production of methylecgonidine during pyrolysis.[7][8][9]
MDMA
Commonly known as "Ecstasy", it is a common club drug in the rave scene.
ketamine
used by paramedics in emergency situations for its dissociative and analgesic qualities and illegally in the club drug scene
LSD
A popular ergoline derivative, that was first synthesized in 1938 by Hofmann. However, he failed to notice its psychedelic potential until 1943.[10] In the 1950s, it was used in psychological therapy, and, covertly, by the CIA in Project MKULTRA, in which the drug was administered to unwitting US and Canadian citizens. It played a central role in 1960s 'counter-culture', and was banned in October 1968 by US President Lyndon B Johnson.[11][12]
nitrous oxide
legally used by dentists as an anxiolytic and anaesthetic, it is also used recreationally by users who obtain it from whipped cream canisters (see inhalant).
opiates and opioids
Available by prescription.
psilocybin mushrooms
Until 1963, when it was chemically analysed by Albert Hofmann, it was completely unknown to modern science that psilocybe semilanceata ("Liberty Cap", common throughout Europe) contains psilocybin, a hallucinogen previously identified only in species native to Mexico, Asia, and North America.[13]
tobacco
Nicotiana tabacum. A legal drug contained in tobacco leaves, which are either smoked, chewed or snuffed. It contains nicotine, which crosses the blood–brain barrier in 10–20 seconds. It mimics the action of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine at nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in the brain and the neuromuscular junction. The neuronal forms of the receptor are present both post-synaptically (involved in classical neurotransmission) and pre-synaptically, where they can influence the release of multiple neurotransmitters.[14]
tranquilizers
barbiturates, benzodiazepines (commonly prescribed for anxiety; known to cause dementia and post acute withdrawal syndrome)
Bath salts
Mephedrone/Methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV)
DMT
primary ingredient in ayahuasca, can also be smoked in a crack pipe; briefly (c. 30 minutes) causes a "total loss of connection to external reality"[15]
Peyote
Contains mescaline, native to southwestern Texas and Mexico
salvia divinorum
hallucinogenic Mexican herb in the mint family; not considered recreational, most likely due to the nature of the hallucinations (legal)
Synthetic cannabis
Spice, K2, JWH-018, AM-2201
research chemicals
2C variants, etc.
  1. ^ Taylor, M.; Mackay, K.; Murphy, J.; McIntosh, A.; McIntosh, C.; Anderson, S.; Welch, K. (24 July 2012). "Quantifying the RR of harm to self and others from substance misuse: results from a survey of clinical experts across Scotland". BMJ Open. 2 (4): e000774–e000774. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2011-000774. Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  2. ^ "The Global Drug Survey 2014 findings". Global Drug Survey. 2014. Retrieved September 2014. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  3. ^ http://monographs.iarc.fr/ENG/Classification/ClassificationsGroupOrder.pdf
  4. ^ John Philip Jenkins. "methamphetamine (drug) – Britannica Online Encyclopedia". Britannica.com. Retrieved 29 January 2012.
  5. ^ Cruickshank CC, Dyer KR (July 2009). "A review of the clinical pharmacology of methamphetamine". Addiction. 104 (7): 1085–1099. doi:10.1111/j.1360-0443.2009.02564.x. PMID 19426289.
  6. ^ Malenka RC, Nestler EJ, Hyman SE (2009). "15". In Sydor A, Brown RY (ed.). Molecular Neuropharmacology: A Foundation for Clinical Neuroscience (2nd ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill Medical. p. 370. ISBN 978-0-07-148127-4. Unlike cocaine and amphetamine, methamphetamine is directly toxic to midbrain dopamine neurons.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  7. ^ "Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics of Methylecgonidine, a Crack Cocaine Pyrolyzate". aspetjournals.org.
  8. ^ British Journal of Pharmacology – Abstract of article: Evidence for cocaine and methylecgonidine stimulation of M2 muscarinic receptors in cultured human embryonic lung cells
  9. ^ Studies on Hydrolytic and Oxidative Metabolic Pathways of Anhydroecgonine Methyl Ester (Methylecgonidine) Using Microsomal Preparations from Rat Organs (Chemical Research in Toxicology/ACS Publications)
  10. ^ Albert Hofmann. "LSD My Problem Child". Retrieved 19 April 2010.
  11. ^ "Brecher, Edward M; et al. (1972). "How LSD was popularized". Consumer Reports/Drug Library". Druglibrary.org. Retrieved 20 June 2012.
  12. ^ United States Congress (24 October 1968). "Staggers-Dodd Bill, Public Law 90-639" (PDF). Retrieved 8 September 2009.
  13. ^ Hofmann A, Heim R, Tscherter H. (1963). "Phytochimie – présence de la psilocybine dans une espèce européenne d'agaric, le Psilocybe semilanceata Fr." [Phytochemistry – presence of psilocybin in a European agaric species, Psilocybe semilanceata Fr.]. Comptes rendus hebdomadaires des séances de l'Académie des sciences (in French) 257 (1). pp. 10–12.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  14. ^ Wonnacott S (February 1997). "Presynaptic nicotinic ACh receptors". Trends in Neurosciences. 20 (2): 92–8. doi:10.1016/S0166-2236(96)10073-4. PMID 9023878.
  15. ^ "Erowid DMT (Dimethyltryptamine) Vault". Erowid.org. Retrieved 20 September 2012.
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