The medicinal purposes of illegal drugs has always fascinated me. Are there any actual medical pluses with these drugs: Cocaine Marijuana Crack Cocaine Opium Heroin XTC Alcohol Cigars/Cigarettes. I doubt that some of them have any known medical pluses…but I do wonder.
Cocaine-- no, never. Marijuana-- glaucoma for one. I've heard of people using it as a stimulant for people/pets that refuse to eat. Great for any terminal illness. Crack Cocaine-- no, never. Opium-- less refined form of morphine. Too weak to have an practical purpose, but they do use it occasionally. Heroin-- stronger form of morphine. If it weren't so dangerous, they probably would use it. XTC-- This melts your brain, literally. No medical uses I can think of. Alcohol-- increase the blood ph which might have some useful applications. Cigars/Cigarettes.-- These things are full of carcinogens. I guess if you wanted to induce cancer..
Alcohol and tobacco are not illegal. Some dope addicts say they need marijuana for "pain" relief. What they don't say is that the active chemical in the plant has been available as a synthetic in tablet form by prescription for a long time. As to pluses, I've suffered cluster headaches (vascular headaches similar to migraines) all my life. Nicotine moderates the pain of the headaches so I can get by with buffered asprin instead of the garbage doctors always wanted to "try" on me. My drugs of choice are alcohol, caffine, and nicotine.
Cocaine can be used as a numbing agent, and as a stimulent for people who need stimulents, as well as for winning long distance races. I've raced against this guy who's got ADD, so he's always on amphetamines. Not fair man, not fair.
Marijuana causes short term memory. I think we could all use a little of that. :m: All these drugs do is cause dopamine to be released into your system. None of them literally "rot" your brain. they merely cause you to feel better when your on them than when your not (oh no!). Dopamine is our natural drug however and it can be released through a number of placebos including responding to a post.
Calvin: Well no, not all drugs are psychoactive in that way. The problem with E is that it places undue stress on the production of dopamine and hence skews the reuptake process for quite some time. As for lasting effects....I don't know. Xerxes: And what is life but a terminal std? Ah, how we all need a little medical pot. Cocaine was first used as a antesthetic (sp?). If I remember rightly, Freud was addicted to it for that reason after he contracted throat cancer. They used to use it in couples counseling. Not exactly medical but apparently the first use of E was as a way of getting fighting couples to open up to each other. The one and only time I used E I ended up with my arms around a tree yelling "OH TREE! I love you tree!" so I can kinda see how that might have worked. Heavy to moderate drinkers have been shown in some studies to live a good five to seven years longer than non-drinkers. However, I am too lazy to look that up. I suppose that you could argue downers as being good for you in that they can relieve tension. Good for the cardiovascular system.
You made the blanket statement of "these drugs work by releasing dopamine". That is untrue. Some drugs, generally uppers, are effective because of the way they affect the release and or the reuptake - the processing - of dopamine. However, hallucinogens such as LSD and 'shrooms seem to cause the trip by binding to serotonin receptors and thus either altering the way the brain processes certain perceptions. Or so it is theorized - nobody is precisely sure how LSD works and different mushrooms cause different effects. Hence my own response is not "yes"
Isn't it interesting that we are born without any of these substances in our bodies, the drugs I'm refering to here, and we then go out and buy the illegal drugs to alter the perfectly good brains we were born with. Doesn't make much sense to destroy what was already given to us but then again life is full of stupidity isn't it?
Yup, life is sure filled with stupidity when idiots who have no clue what they are talking about make statements that are absolutely ridiculous We are indeed born with the substances that most drugs trigger the production/release/faster/slower/reuptake of. If we weren't, drugs wouldn't bloody work.
Well from what little I do know, cocaine was the key ingredient in coca-cola (alas the word coca) to get civil war vets off morphine.
Heroine was the non-addictive subtitute for morphine. Oops. Relatively little is known about LSD, but I hear that LSD in a pure form isn't as dangerous as its critics make it out to be.
LSD can cause post-trips. Shrooms do the same. It isnt definiate that it will happen, it just can. many drugs are seen as helping mental health rather than physical health.
PCP can be used as a painkiller. When my dad used to box, the only guy he ever lost to was on PCP. Couldn't phase the guy. I think it's also a hallucinogen.
You can go here and decide for your self if marijuana has medical plusses http://www.medicalmarijuanaprocon.org/ Personaly, I think everyone could benefit from a few hits from the bong...
Freud and some of his followers prescribed cocaine to many pateints for several purposes. Many people with ADHD and some with seizures self medicate with cigarettes, this has caused some doctors to start looking to straight Nicotine as a treatment option. Nicotine is not harmful (as far as anyone can see so far) it is the carcinogens that Xerxes mentioned that are damaging. Nicotine itself seems to bump up Dopamine levels (like SOME, though not ALL drugs) and effectively treat ADHD in limited trials.
What's that shaking disease? E is good for that apparently. Everything else has been covered I think..Oh and nicotine makes your blood more likely to clot (which is not good)
On the news tonight I heard they're going to be giving Extasy to terminal cancer patients in their last days to ease the pain or make them more enjoyable or something. Hope the care package includes glow sticks and a dance mix to complete the experience.
