Q - What can drugs do for you?

Ans: Drugs that are prescribed by a doctor for an illness can cure you. If they are misused, they can damage your brain and body - even kill you. They can make you feel as if you can't do without them.

Q - What other effects can drugs have?

Ans: Illegal drugs can make you "high", so that you feel as if you are escaping your problems. But what's really happening is that drugs are changing the way your brain works - and soon you become their slave!

Q - Why do people abuse drugs?

Ans: Some want to experiment and have fun. Others are rebelling against authority. Some are trying to relax or escape. Still others are trying to treat a medical problem. But hte main reason people use drugs is peer pressure - to fit in with the crowd.

Q - What legal drugs are abused?

Ans: Alcohol, tobacco and caffeine are some of the most widely abused legal drugs in the United States. Prescription and non-prescription medications, like diet and sleep aids, are also abused.

Q - How does alcohol harm you?

Ans: Alcohol causes cirrhosis of the liver, pancreatitis, stomach ulcers, and cancer. Alcohol can lead to brain damage, heart failure, irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure, and stroke, and can contribute to impotence.

Q - How does tobacco harm you?

Ans: Smoking causes high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke and lung and bladder cancer. Chewing tobacco causes cancer of the stomach, throat and mouth. Tobacco contains nicotine, a drug that makes tobacco addictive.

Ans: Caffeine is a stimulant in many soft drinks, coffees and teas. It is also in some aspirin products and in chocolate and cocoa. Fast heart rate, irregular heartbeat and stomach ulcers can result from too much caffeine.

Q - How can prescription medications harm you?

Ans: Many prescription and non-prescription medications like nasal sprays, painkillers, tranquilizers and diet pills, are misused. Poisoning and death can result, as can damage to the liver, kidneys and other internal organs.