Generally, when people talk about drugs and dependency they are referring to illegal drugs and alcohol.
But people can develop dependency on a range of substances including prescription drugs, cigarettes, caffeine and glue.
The vast majority of people who use drugs come to no significant physical or psychological harm.
However, there are some very serious risks both for legal and illegal substances.
The effects of drugs are influenced by the amount taken, the frequency of previous use (tolerance), body weight, the surroundings in which they are taken and the reactions of other people. These factors are all influenced by social and cultural attitudes to, and beliefs about drugs.
The same person may react differently to drugs at different times, according to their mood.
Drugs can be smoked, sniffed, swallowed or injected.
Injecting is the least widespread way of using drugs and is the most hazardous method as all the drug is carried directly to the brain.
Illegal substances are not subject to manufacturing controls so may contain a range of unknown impurities.
A buyer will not know the strength of the substance, its ‘purity’, and will not necessarily know how much to take. These factors contribute to the unpredictability of using illegal drugs.
