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Drugs With High Addiction Potential
4 TYPES OF PRESCRIPTION DRUGS WITH
HIGH ADDICTION POTENTIAL
The medical
profession gives us pills that can help us to manage the pain that comes from
surgery, broken bones, joint disorders and the like.
Some of them have a high addiction potential.
The following are four types that have a
higher potential than some others:
OXYCODONE
Oxycodone is a synthetic painkilling drug that is similar to
morphine in many aspects.
Specialists
use it to treat a variety of painful conditions such as back pains, dislocated
shoulders, post-surgery pain, fibromyalgia and so forth.
OxyContin
and Percocet are brand names for it.
Usually,
the drug comes in a pill form, and it’s mixed with other analgesics such as
acetaminophen.
Because
it works like morphine does and binds itself to the brain’s opioid receptors,
it’s very easy for a person to become addicted to it.
Currently,
there are more than 23 million people with addictions to oxycodone and similar
substances.
The
drug brings forth feelings of euphoria and eliminates all physical and
emotional pain. That contributes to the high addictiveness of it.
HYDROCODONE
Hydrocodone is a semi-synthetic opioid that manufacturers
designed after codeine rather than morphine.
It’s
slightly less potent than oxycodone is, but it still has addictive qualities.
It
works the same way that hydrocodone works, and the doctor prescribes it for the
same conditions.
The
brand name for this drug are names like Vicodin and Zohydro.
AMPHETAMINE / DEXTROAMPHETAMINE
Amphetamines and Dextroamphetamines are substances that
stimulate the body’s central nervous system.
Specialists
would prescribe these drugs for conditions such as attention deficit
hyperactivity disorder or narcolepsy, which is a condition that causes an
affected person to fall asleep against his or her will.
Adderall
and Dexedrine are examples of such drugs. Amphetamines affect brain chemicals
such as dopamine, which is a “feel good” chemical.
Its
also causes the release of norepinephrine, which gives the affected person a
sense of arousal.
Addiction
potential is very high in this drug because of the pleasurable feeling that
people get when they take it and the aroused “fight or flight” feeling that
pumps through their veins.
A
large percentage of amphetamine abuse occurs within colleges within students
who originally used the drugs as a way to stay awake.
BENZODIAZEPINES
Klonopin,
Onfi and Librax are examples of drugs in such a class. Doctors prescribe them
for conditions such as anxiety, insomnia, panic disorders and the like.
They
work to calm the person by affecting the gamma-aminobutyric receptors in the
brain.
The
addiction rate of these pills is high, and withdrawal from such drugs is
dangerous enough to cause seizures.
The
addiction numbers are high for this drugs as with the other ones, and the ages
of affected persons vary greatly.
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