Drugs - dangerous "kick"
and Eva Rudolf-Müller, doctorJanine Berdelmann studied social sciences and completed her traineeship in the editorial team. She is the author of numerous science news and advice topics on .
More about the expertsEva Rudolf-Müller is a freelance writer in the medical team. She studied human medicine and newspaper sciences and has repeatedly worked in both areas - as a doctor in the clinic, as a reviewer, and as a medical journalist for various specialist journals. She is currently working in online journalism, where a wide range of medicine is offered to everyone.
More about the experts All content is checked by medical journalists.Alcohol, cigarettes, crystal or cannabis - sooner or later you may come into contact with these drugs. Because young people in particular are always looking for the "kick". But be careful: the supposed fun often ends in a catastrophe. Because drugs are never harmless: They harbor numerous dangers and can even be fatal.
Drug use can kill
According to police records, 1,333 people in Germany died in 2016 as a result of using illegal drugs such as heroin or cocaine. That means an increase of nine percent compared to the previous year. This increased the number of drug deaths for the fourth year in a row.
In addition to illegal drugs, legal drugs such as alcohol and cigarettes are also extremely dangerous. Every year around 55,000 young people are killed by alcohol. In Germany, 74,000 people die from it every year - mostly in combination with the risk factor of smoking.
Gateway drug cigarettes
(E-) cigarettes are the number one gateway drug. This may be because they are easy to get hold of - even easier than alcohol, for example. Many young people in your generation start smoking by the age of ten. According to a recent study, almost every third man, every fourth woman and around 12 percent of young people between the ages of 14 and 17 in Germany smoke.
Speaking of smoking, the most popular of all illegal drugs is cannabis. Experts assume that around 3.1 million adults in Germany consume it regularly. The drug also seems to have become more interesting for young people: While 6.2 percent of people were smoking weed in 2008, 9.5 percent of 12 to 17-year-olds already have experience with cannabis.
Unpredictable designer drugs
Unlike cannabis, which is obtained from a plant, so-called synthetic or designer drugs are completely artificially produced in the laboratory. That means you can never know exactly what and how much is really in it. The dosages are difficult to estimate and the side effects can be serious. Classic examples of these "party drugs" are ecstasy, speed or LSD. These new psychoactive substances (NPS), also known as "legal highs", killed almost 100 people in Germany in 2016.
Crystal makes you old and stupid
Another man-made substance has been making the headlines for a long time: crystal meth. Even if it seems different in the cult series “Breaking Bad”: Meth is not cool. It is a dangerous drug, more precisely: a methamphetamine with a very strong and long-lasting effect. Crystal demands everything from the body. Whoever takes it is not thirsty, not hungry and not tired.
The price for the pushing effect is unbelievably high: within a few months, consumers age extremely. Their teeth fall out, their skin becomes flaky and they become emaciated. Crystal is also a neurotoxin that damages the brain - addicts mentally break down.
Crystal is one of the most dangerous substances of all, because it is very quickly psychologically addicting.
That's why drugs are so dangerous
What you notice immediately when you take drugs: Your perception changes. Because the so-called psychoactive substances reach the brain via the bloodstream. There they trigger different reactions. Maybe you become happier, are suddenly full of energy or more courageous than usual. Sounds good at first, but drugs manipulate your body. So the feeling for time and space can be lost. What the respective substance triggers in you can often not be foreseen. In addition, your judgment may be so that you misjudge (dangerous) situations. Often times, when the effects wear off, you feel terrible, possibly even depressed.
Panic attacks instead of euphoria
If you use so-called hallucinogenic drugs such as cannabis, LSD or “magic mushrooms”, it can even lead to a “horror trip”. Instead of euphoria and bright colors, you then feel fear, panic or even delusional. Sometimes those affected even commit suicide in such a case.
It happens in your body
The body reacts very differently to the various drugs. For some, the pulse and blood pressure rise and the pupils dilate - this is most likely to happen to you when consuming cannabis, for example. Heroin, on the other hand, does the opposite: blood pressure drops and the pupils constrict. There may also be problems with balance and orientation, constipation, nausea, vomiting, or feeling cold. Some substances, such as amphetamines or ecstasy, can even trigger an epileptic seizure.
If the drug wears off, many users suffer from depression. Some get tired but cannot sleep. You are on rehab.
Dangerous spiral of addiction
If you become addicted to a drug and therefore consume it regularly, your body develops a certain tolerance towards the substance. That means: The effect of a normal dose decreases, your body craves for ever larger amounts of the addictive substance. In this way, the psyche and body become more and more dependent on the drug in order to still be able to function normally.
Depending on which drugs you take, how often and for how long, this can cause severe damage to the liver, nervous system, gastrointestinal tract or your heart. Your brain also suffers enormously: You are less efficient, your gray cells are destroyed. In addition, your skin changes, it becomes pale, sallow and wrinkled. Hallucinations that last for weeks are also possible.
Consequences not foreseeable
Mixing different drugs is particularly dangerous. Because the different effects mean an extreme burden on your body and your psyche. In fact, many deaths from "party drugs" like ecstasy are due to many different pills being thrown together.
Basically, the long-term damage caused by drugs is difficult to reverse. You keep some for life.
Social suicide
The effects of drugs on your social life should not be underestimated either. With addicts, especially those of "hard" drugs, life revolves more and more about getting the next "kick". Friends, school, love - none of that seems important anymore. Sooner or later, of course, the friends run away. The addict is completely alone. Many people start to steal or even sell their bodies to finance their addiction.
accept help
Addiction is a disease - and it can affect anyone. That's why nobody should be afraid to seek help. There are, for example, various addiction centers that can listen to you and advise you on how to escape the addiction trap. Some of these points of contact are anonymous, but there is also an addiction counselor at every school that you can speak to.
You can find more information and help here:
- Addiction and Drugs Hotline: www.sucht-und-drogen-hotline.de; Hotline: 01805-313031 (advisors can also tell you about offers of help in the vicinity)
- Association No Power to Drugs e.V .: ww.kmdd.de
- Mindzone project: www.mindzone.info
- Drugcom project: www.drugcom.de
