Drug Use & Abuse

A person's use of more than one drug at a time is of little concern because it happens so infrequently.

False - Althouth multiple drug use is not as frequent as use of a single substance, it is hardly rare, especially among young people. It is of great concern because combining drugs sometimes has unpredictable effects that may be life-threatening.

A person's reaction to a drug depends mostly on the biological action of the drug in the body.

False - Biology is important, but psychological and social or emotional factors must also be included to explain the effects of psychoactive drugs on humans.

Within the United States, similar patterns of alcohol and other drug use are found even among different subgroups of the population.

False - Drug use has been found to vary with characteristics of the person and of the environment

Because drug use is complicated, it is impossible to estimate patterns of drug use for the population of a whole country.

False - Drug use is complicated, but sophisticated sampling methods and computers have made it possible to select large numbers of people and survey them to derive precise estimates of drug use in a given population.

Because the effects of drugs are both predictable and obvious, it is relatively easy to define drug abuse.

False - Drugs have a variety of effects on people, and the way drugs are perceived may vary in different cultures and subcultures. As a result, it has proved difficult to creat a definition of drug abuse that is generally agreeable.

The continued use of any drug will eventually lead to tolerance of and physical dependence on that drug.

False - The continued use of many, but not all, drugs may lead to tolerance of and physical dependence on that drug.

The total economic cost of alcohol and drug abuse in the United States is about a billion dollars annually.

False - The most recent estimates suggest it is more than 276 times that amount.

The use of alcohol and other drugs causes violent crime.

False - The use of alcohol and other, but not all other drugs, is assocated with violence and crime but does not directly cause such behaviors.

Modern researchers rely on definitions of alcohol and other drug use that are free of social or cultural biases.

False - We are improving our ability to rid our definitions of biases, but due to the influence of social and cultural factors on alcohol and other dru use, it is unlikely that we will ever arrive at bias-free definitions.

A diagnosis of drug abuse is made when a person has become either physically or psychologically dependent on a drug.

False - dependance and abuse are considered separate diagnoses. A person could not be diagnosed with both dependence on and abuse of a single drug.

Definitions of addiction center on overwhelming with a drug.

True - Addiction is identified when a person has overwhelming involvement with using a drug. The person's life centers on getting an adequate supply of the drug, which takes priority over most or all other parts of life, such as school, job, family and friends.

The highest rates of alcohol and other drug use are found among 18-to-25 year olds.

True - People in this age group, called "young adults" have the highest rates of alcohol and other drug use in the United States.

A drug's street name sometimes describes the actual effects of that drug.

True - Street names, which come from drug subcutures and the street drug market, sometimes do reflect actual drug effects.