About Substance Abuse
How common is it?
What causes it?
How long does it last?
What are the long-term consequences?
What treatments are effective?
A review of the evidence
What's new?
Resources
What are the long-term consequences?
Cigarette smoking is a major cause of death from heart disease, stroke, cancer, and lung disease in adults. Early continued use is also associated with depression and anxiety during adolescence, and with poor outcomes in adulthood, including depression, poor physical health, reduced income compared to non-smoking peers, and a lower level of education.1 Quitting is very difficult2 as nicotine is a highly addictive substance.
Teens who binge drink (have more than 5 drinks one after another) are more likely than teens who don’t drink that way to do badly at school, be a victim of dating violence, attempt suicide, or do other things that put their health at risk, like having unprotected sex.3
There have been many reports of teens being injured or dying when swimming or driving after drinking or using other substances.
Injecting drugs can lead to hepatitis (a serious liver disease), HIV-AIDS, tetanus (a potentially fatal disease that causes serious muscle spasms), or blood poisoning. Inhaled drugs like cocaine can “burn” a hole inside the nose, or cause heart attacks or strokes.
Marijuana may cause some vulnerable teenagers to become psychotic.4 Being psychotic means having hallucinations like hearing voices or seeing things that aren’t there, having trouble thinking clearly, or having thoughts that don’t make sense to other people. So, even though marijuana may not seem as “toxic” as other drugs, for some people it can lead to serious after effects that will require long-term treatment.
Of increasing concern is the rise in the use of an extremely addictive synthetic drug called “crystal meth”. Methamphetamine is a prescribed stimulant medication that is used legitimately to treat attention deficit disorder or the sleep disorder, narcolepsy. Crystal meth is a type of methamphetamine that is “cooked up” using toxic and volatile substances like paint thinner, drain cleaner, or the lithium from batteries. When smoked or inhaled, it has serious physical and mental consequences that may not get better over time. Irregular heartbeat, damage to brain blood vessels that can cause strokes, severe depression, or symptoms of Parkinson’s Disease related to brain damage can occur. Withdrawal is very difficult for the addicted individual and relapse is frequent. Another distinct feature of crystal meth use is the number of children who are neglected or abused by their addicted parents. Crystal meth use is a growing problem in North America, but in comparison to other drugs, its use is still fairly rare.5
It is important to note that substance abuse affects not only the individual drug user but society as a whole, through lost productivity, increased crime rates, and increasing numbers of homeless people on our streets.
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1. |
Georgiades K, Boyle MH. Adolescent tobacco and cannabis use: young adult outcomes from the Ontario Child Health Study. 2007. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. In Press. |
| 2. |
Davis CG. Risks associated with tobacco use in youth aged 15-19: analysis drawn from the 2004 Canadian Addiction Survey. 2006; Ottawa, ON: Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse. |
| 3. |
Miller JW, Naimi TS, Brewer RD, Jones SE. Binge drinking and associated health risk behaviors among high school students. Pediatrics. 2007; 119 (1): 76-85. |
| 4. |
Hall WD. Cannabis use and the mental health of young people. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry. 2006; 40: 105-113. |
| 5. |
Alberta Alcohol and Drug Abuse Commission. 2004. Amphetamines: The ABCs.http://parent.aadac.com/87_441.asp |
