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The drug problem among
the British teenagersCONTENTS
Introduction
What did the European survey show?
The most spread species of drugs.
Cannabis
Cocaine
Heroin
Amphetamines
Ecstasy
Hallucinatory drugs
Tranquillisers & Sedatives
A story about Simon Foster.
Report of Institute for the Study of Drug Dependence.
A new anti-drug campaign & it’s help.
Conclusion
Bibliography list
INTRODUCTION
The title of this paper is “The drug problem among the British
teenagers”. At present there exists a big problem, concerning many
teenagers. This is the problem of drug addiction.
The government of many countries takes measures to eliminate this
addiction. But even in such developed country as Great Britain these
measures aren’t very effective. However the police very often arrest 12-
& 13-year-old drug users.
The aim of my scientific work is to expose the harm of the drug
addiction & to explain it to the Ukrainian youth, because the drug
problem is a very big problem. If we don’t stop it, the damage to
humanity will be irreparable loss. The consequence of the drug-use in
many cases is the death.
What did the European survey show?
Nowadays, there many secret groupings devoted to spreading of drugs.
There are many kinds of drugs & that’s why many teenagers cannot resist
the drugs’ temptation.
That’s why last year, a European survey showed that the number of
teenagers who had tried drugs was 6 per cent in Greece, 15 per cent in
France and 30 per cent in Britain.
Statistics show that drug use by British teenagers has doubled since
1989. Half teenagers who were interviewed admitted they had tried at
least one type of drug. 70 per cent said they had been offered drugs in
the past 3 months.
The drugs that the government is most worried about are stimulant drugs
such as Speed and Ecstasy (or ‘E’ as it is commonly known) and
hallucinogenic drugs such as LSD. They are worried that many young
people believe these drugs to be exciting and fashionable. They think
that many of teenagers will be influenced by films such as Transporting
and Pulp Fiction, which show attractive people taking drugs.
The most spread species of drugs.
It must be noted that the most spread species of drugs are cannabis,
cocaine, heroin & others. The following paragraph deals with the short
story about every of them
Cannabis. Commonly found in herbal form, looking like sage or dried
herbs, or as a resin, resembling chunks of liquorice or a golden powder.
Usually smoked by mixing with tobacco; gives off aromatic, slightly
sickly smell. Produces feeling of elation, relaxation. Can cause
psychological dependence and short-term memory loss; increases risk of
bronchitis and other lung problems.
Cocaine. Fine, white crystalline powder, usually taken by sniffing it up
a use or by injection. Produces state of euphoria. Prolonged “snorting”
causes ulceration and perforation of the nasal septum. Crack cocaine is
a smokable form, varying from yellow/beige “rocks” to white powder.
Powerfully psychologically addictive. Produces rush of euphoria followed
by rapid depression.
Heroin. White or speckled browns powder; can be sniffed, injected, or
heated and the resulting fumes then inhaled. Produces relaxed euphoria,
dehydration and lack of appetite. Highly addictive.
Amphetamines. Commonly a powder found in a variety of colours, but may
be in pill or capsule form. Taken orally, injected or inhaled,
amphetamines cause excitability, talkativeness, feeling of unlimited
energy. Regular use can lead to weight loss and psychological
dependence.
Ecstasy. Tablet or capsule in a variety of colours and forms.
Increases awareness and energy, inhibitions disappear; causes
dehydration, increased blood pressure and heart rate; may affect
co-ordination. Has been linked with fatalities.
Hallucinatory drugs. LSD—taken by mouth, as tiny coloured tablets, or
impregnated in paper or gelatine squares. Effects include heightened
awareness of sound and colour, hallucinations; may also cause
disorientation, panic, persecution mania and conviction of
invincibility. Flashbacks can occur several months after use. Psilocybin
is another hallucinogen, found in so-called “magic mushrooms”—certain
species of fungi that grow in the wild.
Tranquillisers and Sedatives. Tablets or capsules in various colours and
forms available legally on prescription. Usually taken orally; cause
drowsiness, light-headedness, feeling of relaxation. May cause
psychological dependence.
A story about Simon Foster.
Next is concern with the story about an English teenager, 15-year-old
Simon Foster.
At school he felt a misfit, until he fell in with a group of boys with
whom he began enjoying something in common: smoking cannabis. “I thought
it was really cool, and that I’d found a niche in life.”
An occasional adventure became regular routine. But after 18 months,
Simon was caught red-handed. He was expelled from school and, fined F25,
acquired a criminal record.
His horrified parents found it hard to talk to him about the problem;
their anxiety all too often turned attempts at discussion into shouting
matches. They took the view that Simon should face up to life’s
difficulties as they had done when young.
Simon promised never to touch drugs again—but after he won a place at a
London sixth-form college, he soon made contact with local pushers. He
did so badly in his A levels that university was out of the question. He
began drifting through life, taking short-lived reporting jobs on local
newspapers and trying just about every drug, from Valium and
amphetamines to LSD and even heroin. But cocaine became the main love of
his life. “I never forgot the first ‘high’ it gave me. From then on it
was as if I was forever chasing that wonderful buzz of total euphoria.”
As he came to rely on cocaine, his life spiralled into nightmare. “I
kept telling myself that I was just a ‘recreational’ user. But I spent
more and more time behind closed curtains in my flat, gripped by
loneliness, fear and paranoia. Yet I was terrified of giving up the drug
that seemed to help me cope with those feelings.”
At 25, realizing at last that he could no longer ignore the problem, he
sought help from a group therapy programme. Now drug-free and trying to
make a living as a freelance writer, he concludes: “My addiction wasted
my time, money and opportunities. Understanding that was a major step
towards recovery.” Thousands of other young people risk going down the
same route as Simon Foster.
Report of Institute for the Study of Drug Dependence.
A 1993 report by the Institute for the Study of Drug Dependence
estimated that by the age of 20, up to one person in three has tried
drugs, mainly cannabis. About one in ten—around half a million
youngsters—are thought to have tried amphetamines; another half-million
are believed to use Ecstasy regularly. In 1992, there were 2,754
under-17s convicted for possessing drugs—a 264 per cent increase since
1988.
Children are trying drugs earlier and earlier. An annual countrywide
summary of the experience of children aged 11 to 15, by Exeter
University, found that in 1992 the percentage at each age that had used
drugs had almost doubled since 1990.
In December 1992, Scarborough police charged or cautioned 26 children
between 12 and 16 about use of LSD. In Dorset, police arrested children
of 12 and 13 for possession of LSD and Ecstasy.
A new anti-drugs compaign.
In connection with this problem the government of Great Britain decided
that it needed a new anti-drugs compaign. However, before it did this,
it studied young people’s attitudes. The survey showed that teenagers
knew that drugs were bad for them but they could not actually name any
health risk associated with particular drugs. It also showed that 61 per
cent of teenage drug-users would consider stopping using drugs if they
thought they were a serious danger to their health.
It was also understood that many teenagers ignored drugs warnings in
schools because they thought they were childish. In fact, it was proved
that in some cases, the reason for taking drugs was to rebel against
warnings from adults.
Using the results of the survey, a new campaign has been started. The
new campaign hopes to treat teenagers like adults. It informs young
people of the health risks associated with particular drugs. It does
this with photos of teenagers. On the advertisements, the parts of their
bodies which can be damaged by drugs, are indicated by biological
diagrams showing the health risks.
Many teenagers try drugs as a ‘dare’ to show their friends that they are
not scared. Often their friends insist until the person says ‘yes’. The
health authority hope that the advertisements will help teenagers to say
‘no’ to this and be able to have good reasons to say it. In addition to
posters, the health authority has also made radio advertisements and put
the number of their drugs helpline (a telephone number that can be
called confidentially for help) in a lot of places. The people at the
helpline advise people what to do if they have a drug problem or need
more information about the dangers of drugs.
CONCLUSION.
In this work the problem of drugs has been disclosed. We see that drug
addiction brings incorrigible harm to humanity. Still there is more &
more people fall for its temptation. We know that medicine-drugs are
given to seriously ill people to alleviate their suffering. But these
medicines have one insidious property: organism gets accustomed to them
quickly & wants new doses.
Drug addiction is our enemy. And if we don’t struggle against it, it’ll
bring many losses. In addiction I want to say that drug addiction is as
a white storm cloud, which isn’t seen on the horizon, but unfortunately,
many young people have already been caught in its big, terrible rain.
Take care of this white storm cloud!
BIBLIOGRAPHY LIST.
New Anti-drugs Compaign for Young People// Team.
1.a New Anti-drugs Compaign for Young People// English learner’s
“Digest” – 1998. – №10. – p.7.
Kids and Drugs// David Moller.
2.a Kids and Drugs// Readers “Digest” – 1994. – №2 – p. 118-123.
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