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Teens negative effects of alcohol and drugs
Today the statistics shows deplorable numbers of young people,
drinking alcohol and taking drugs. Substance abuse in adolescence
has numerous negative social and health effects on the future
life of teenagers and very often ruins them. It is high time
to stop this epidemic if our society does not want to loose
its future.
American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP)
highlights the following most apparent negative consequences
of substance abuse: personality change, low self-esteem, poor
judgment, irresponsible behavior, health complaints, fatigue
and depression. If to discuss social effects at greater length,
it is evident that substance abuse results in breaking rules
and irresponsibility. Being under the influence of alcohol
or drugs, they feel free from all bans and rules that are
imposed by older people.
Speaking about health effects of alcohol and drug abuse, they
are not much apparent at once. Among short-term effects, there
are increased temperature and blood pressure, nausea, disturbed
sleep and hangover, in case of taking alcohol. However, the
long-term effects of substance dependence are far more serious.
Alcohol is very harmful for a human organism, especially for
a young one, because it destroys brain cells and other organs.
Using of alcohol raises the probability of getting the cirrhosis
or ulcers.
According to scientists’ researches, tobacco gradually
becomes the primary cause of human mortality. Tobacco addicted
people will rather die from a disease caused by nicotine usage.
We should remember that passive smoking is as harmful as active;
therefore, all of us should be involved into anti-smoking
campaign.
In order to be able to deal with the problem it is necessary
to know its roots. The first factor provoking abuse is genetic,
which means that weakness for alcohol can be inherited. The
second factor is psychopathology and particular diseases,
which suggests that certain mental disorders can be the cause
of substance abuse. The third factor is social environment
when addiction is induced by the social norms of a particular
community.
The treatment of substance abuse and dependence lies in the
sphere of psychology and includes three stages: assessment,
plan of treatment and psychiatric management. It is essential
to establish trusting relationship between a doctor and a
patient; the process of the patient’s treatment should
be monitored carefully; it is necessary to pay attention at
the concomitant psychiatric illnesses.
There is a number of associations and organizations that can
help parents to cope with the problem, such as Alanon or Alateen.
They can offer psychological and medical help due to a twelve-step
program of recovery.
The most effective way of prevention substance abuse is attention
to children in families. They should feel care and their importance;
then, they would not need to assert themselves and to prove
anything to others. Certainly, it is necessary to control
them and to know their company, but this must be done very
carefully without oppression. there should be prevention programs,
introduced at schools and colleges, informing young people
about the dangers of substance abuse and training them to
resist peer
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