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Mthandazo Ndlovu
I have been doing tours around the country, looking at which are the most commonly abused drugs and substances of abuse.
I then discovered that the cough mixture was the in-thing, and how the abusers of this felt safe and even those around them the parents, teachers and health personnel who would gladly say, a�?here there is no drug abuse they just use these cough mixtures as you can see the empty bottles all over the showa�?.
I will take us through codeine the main substance that gives the effects, that one feels after taking in the cough mixture.
Codeine is one of the many pharmaceuticals classified as an opiate. Opiates are narcotics with a high potential for addiction.
When used as prescribed, this pain reliever and cough suppressant is a relatively mild opiate.
However, it is still a dangerous drug that is increasing in usage and popularity, both with celebrities and with teenagers and young adults.
Codeine is typically administered in liquid or pill form (frequently in combination with acetaminophen), and when used under the direction of a medical professional, codeine is a relatively safe way to treat minor pain or control troublesome coughs.
However, users often abuse codeine for the feelings of relaxation and euphoria they produce.
Codeine abuse can develop into a fully-fledged codeine addiction. In fact, codeine has been classified as a Schedule II drug, meaning it has a high potential of abuse. Like many opiates, withdrawal symptoms from codeine can be quite severe, keeping the user in a cycle of use they find difficult to break.
Codeine is often abused for the effects it can provide in high doses:
-Euphoria.
-Feelings of being drunk.
-Altered consciousness.
However, some of the more common negative short-term effects of codeine use include:
-Nausea and vomiting.
-Excessive drowsiness, dysphoria or confusion.
-Dry mouth.
-Constipation.
-Allergic skin reaction or rash.
At high doses, codeine can also cause dangerous short-term effects for drug users via respiratory depression:
-Breathing can slow.
-The heart rate can drop.
-Blood pressure can fall.
When a user takes an excess dose of codeine, he is subject to loss of consciousness, respiratory collapse and/or cardiac arrest. The resulting decrease in oxygenated blood to various organ systems could be quite devastating.
Without enough oxygen, tissue in the brain and heart can die, leading to permanent organ damage or even death.
Codeine is often combined with other drugs such as benzodiapines, cocaine, and alcohol.
Mixing codeine with other drugs increases the risk of drug overdose and respiratory depression which can be fatal. Other side effects include:
Vertigo or dizziness, stomach upset and loss of appetite, indigestion, hallucinations. Tremors, depression, urinary retention or inability to urinate.
Some of the less-serious side effects of codeine, such as stomach upset, might only last a few hours.
More concerning are effects like mood changes or depression, which can persist for years, depending on the duration and severity of abuse.
-To be continued…
Online Reporter