The word cocaine comes from the plant that it is extracted from. The leaves of the coca plant contain what is called a crystalline tropane alkaloid (not identified until 1855). When this material is removed from the leaves of the coca and ingested, injected or inhaled it gives the body a momentary jolt of energy, excitement and euphoria. The alkaloid is the ine and the beginning of the word is the plant name coca which is how we end up with the name cocaine. This is what we technically know cocaine to be called, however, there are over 137 documented street names with more being created on a daily basis. You may be familiar with the standards such as coke, snow, nose candy and toot, but what about the less obvious and sometimes even hilarious terms used by everyday people to describe cocaine. Words like Bing (as in White Christmas), ching (like the noise from a cash register), devil’s dandruff, Lucifer’s left nostril, showbiz sherbet, shnazzle, sleigh ride, just about anything with the word white in front of it and booger sugar.

In spite of the illegal stigma attached to producing, possessing and distributing cocaine, this drug remains extremely popular amongst the party crowds, social settings, society gatherings and personal bedrooms. Media star icons in music, theater, big screen, intellectual giants and athletes help to perpetuate the glamour and exhilaration associated with its use. But the blame cannot all be placed on those in the rich and famous category who the youth idolize and look up to. In 2003, the estimated market revenue for cocaine sales exceeded $35 billion in the U.S. (more than AT&T) and it is the average everyday individual longing to be a part of the dazzle whose numbers far exceed that of the celebrity world that keep the industry rolling.

What does cocaine look like? If it is in its purest form, it will appear pearly white, in a powder form it tends to look a great deal like salt, also called cocaine hydrochloride. Much of the cocaine purchased on the black market is anything but pure and, in fact, is mixed with a wide variety of blending agents such as baking soda, lactose, talcum powder, powdered sugar, chalk and caffeine with additional numbing agents like benzocaine and/or lidocaine which mimics the loss of sensation when it comes in to contact with mucous membranes. These concoctions may contain no cocaine what-so-ever, but the user may “feel” the anticipated effect just like a sugar pill being given as a medication relieves a headache. This is called a placebo.

Interestingly, the use of common anesthetics like Anbesol, Novacaine and benzocaine may cause a positive drug test for cocaine although the person had no contact with the street drug. Cocaine use is evident in the urine for approximately four days and is present in the hair for as long as the hair during the cocaine use remains in tact.

What are some possible side-effects? Many…

• Hallucinations and paranoid delusions
• Elevated blood pressure and increased heart rate
• Restlessness and hyperactivity
• Euphoria followed by depression and discomfort
• Cravings for more frequent use with higher doses
• Seizures, cardiac and respiratory failure
• Impotence
• Destruction of muscle cells and renal failure
• If injecting, increased risk of disease transfer
• In many cases, depletion and loss of income

This information may be available from other states, also; however, a search for cocaine is what brought this particular article to light. INFORMATION on cocaine, that is, NOT the drug! Get real.

They quoted statistics, they came right out and said exactly what cities had the most drug use, and what drugs were being abused the most. One of them was cocaine.

And, they didn’t stop there. They went on to say how the drug was getting into the state and what route they thought was the major supply line.

They can say (with some pride, probably) that it does appear that powder and crack cocaine abuse has decreased, but that it is still a problem, especially among adolescents and adult males. That’s being pretty specific.

It seems pretty courageous for a state like New Mexico to make it to where anyone who wishes can pull up an article like this one. Especially when it doesn’t pull any punches, and is written in plain English. No legal jargon or “techno” speak, just pure facts and statistics that are easy to read and interpret.

It might just be the thing that is needed. Instead of looking the other way and pretending that a problem doesn’t exist, or that if it does, then it isn’t all that bad, maybe more states should have the guts to say, “Yeah, we’ve got a drug problem. It’s unfortunate, but it’s here. And, this is what it is, and this is how the drugs get here.”

But, states should not stop there. They should take that knowledge and use it to their advantage to address and fight the problem.

Supposedly, drinking this “tea” (leaves+water=tea, right?) does not even come close to producing the feelings that using cocaine does. (The countries that practice this probably don’t want a instant doubling, if not tripling, of the population). This is said to be because the cocaine itself is not absorbed as quickly or as much as cocaine in another form would be.

However, it is said that one does feel some very mild effects of drinking this “tea”. Because of this, it has been suggested (and indeed was tested in one country) that having someone who is attempting to overcome a cocaine addiction to drink this infusion can help in the treatment process. The time between relapses is said to be longer (months may pass before one takes the drug again instead of just weeks).

This test did include counseling and therapy along with the coca leaf infusion method. So, it cannot be considered a “stand-alone” treatment. Sort of like using methadone and similar drugs to overcome other drug addictions, maybe? Is that even a good idea? Could coca leaf infusion therapy even be attempted in the US, or would it be like throwing gasoline on a fire? After all, the coca leaves themselves would have to be imported, or permission would have to be given for it to be grown legally.

Sure does leave a lot of room for a lot of things, all of them bad, to happen. Maybe this isn’t such a good idea to even think about?

The decline in amount of people who use cocaine over the years is good news. The bad news is the amount of cocaine that Americans consume is about the same as it was in 1985. This is due to the increase of crack usage over the years. People use crack on a more regular binge basis abusing 3-5 grams per day, where an average person who snorts cocaine consumes 1-3 grams per day.

With proper education and drug rehab efforts we can keep the number of cocaine users on the decline.

Once this new mixture is formed, it has a cloudy appearance. Ether is then added to this mixture. A vigorous shaking dissolves the freebase. The ether can then be removed, as it is heavier than the freebase, and will evaporate. Smoking “freebase” cocaine produces an immediate “rush” because the drug goes directly to the lungs, where it is absorbed rapidly into the bloodstream. From there, it’s a very quick journey to the brain. The “rush” wears off quickly, but the “high” feeling stays around for a few minutes longer, maybe five to ten.

However, some users feel that even that short amount of time is too long, so they take one “hit” after another until the freebase is gone. This is called “slamming”. A better word might be “stupid”, but that’s just one opinion. “Freebasing” carries its own little dangers, besides those, that come from using the stuff that is left over from the little science project that produces it. For instance, the ether that is used is very flammable. That means that an explosion can occur, or something can catch on fire, or for that matter someone can catch on fire, especially if ether fumes are present on the clothing or skin.

So, one can snort cocaine, inject cocaine, or smoke cocaine in another form besides “crack”. They all have their dangers, so one way is “safer” than another. The only safe way to use cocaine? Don’t use cocaine!

Cocaine can be found in either powder or crystal form. When it is in a crystal form, it is called “crack” cocaine. “Crack” is usually smoked, and, no, it is NOT less addictive than the powder. When powder cocaine is “snorted”, the user can start having trouble with frequent nosebleeds. When enough cocaine has been taken in through the nose, over a period of time, the inside of the nose, as well as the skin that separates the nostrils, can be eaten away.

Cocaine can cause heart failure, seizures, and lung and breathing problems. It can kill a person the very first time it is used. It makes the heart beat very rapidly, which in turn can lead to a fatal heart attack. Using it just once can also cause a seizure; this, too can be deadly.

Continued use causes mental as well as physical problems. People who use cocaine tend to be paranoid: they feel like someone is “out to get them”. They can also be angry, irritable, or hostile, and this is when they AREN’T high, or even when they have not used cocaine recently.

Remember, cocaine is addictive, no matter how it is taken in. This can kill you the first time you use it. Its effects on the brain causes one to not be a very nice person – no one wants to be around somebody who is angry or constantly feeling like the whole world is after them. So, why do it? Ultimately, there isn’t a good enough reason to do so.

The drug cocaine is also known by its chemical name, which is “[1R-(exo,exo)]-3-(Benzoyloxy)-8-methyl-8-azabicyclo[3.2.1]octane-2-carboxylic acid methyl ester”. The drug also has alternative chemical names, and these are [3beta-hydroxy-1alphaH, 5alphaH-tropane-2beta-carboxylic acid methyl ester benzoate and 2beta-carbomethyoxy-3beta-benzoxytropane, ecgonine methyl ester benzoate], as well as [ l-cocaine, beta-cocaine, benzoylmethyl-ecgonine. The chemical formula of cocaine is C17H21NO4. This drug has a molecular weight of 303.36, and has various melting points, depending on the various chemicals in the drug. These are melting points of 98° for the monoclinic tablets, 195° for the Hydrochloride, and 58-63° for the Nitrate dehydrate.

When it was discovered that this natural plant was a stimulant, the natives decided to use it to get rid of fatigue and hunger, or even to boost people’s endurance. At first, the Spanish banned coca because of its effect on the natives. When it was discovered that the natives were actually addicted to the plant, and could not work without it, they started to give the drug to the natives many times a day so that they could do their work.

The effects of cocaine are caused by the interference of information transmission between the nerve cells. The drug is a vasoconstrictor, which means that it narrows the blood vessels. It will also increase the respiration rate and body temperature of those that are using it.

The drug cocaine has physical effects that include increased blood pressure, breathing rates, and heart rates. These symptoms might lead to heart attack, respiratory failure and distress or seizures. There are also affects that are found inside the body. The brain’s wiring is damaged, as are the systems that control the rates of the movements inside the body. The damaging of these important functions is what leads to an overall deterioration of the body.

Recovery from cocaine addiction can be difficult, a drug rehab program can assist in the withdrawal and recovery from cocaine addiction.

Recent trends indicate that the amount of cocaine in the markets today probably meets the user demand in most of the markets, and there really is no shortfall of cocaine. However, there is data to suggest that even though the cocaine is meeting the demands, the purity of the cocaine that is being sold is not staying steady, and is in fact diminishing. This could lead to a much bigger problem, as it is customary for people to continue cocaine use – and if the cocaine that they are using does not make them feel the same way that it used to because of a difference in the purity, people might be more apt to begin to use more and more cocaine in order to get the same high.

It will also become a problem because as the cocaine becomes less pure, there are other things added into the cocaine in order to increase perceived yield. This becomes very dangerous because people do not know what they are going to be putting in their bodies. It is not always the cocaine that they think it is, and this becomes extremely dangerous.

When it comes to the cocaine use statistics, it has usually been found that one out of four Americans between the age of 26 and 34 has used cocaine at one point in their lives. In 1985, it was found that 5,000 adults tried cocaine every day. In the past 20 years, this number has risen dramatically. Today, it is estimated that 22 to 25 million people have tried the drug at least once. There are perhaps over two million people who are addicted to cocaine in the United States today.

It is usually assumed that cocaine leaves the system after it has been used. However, newer estimates find that it can be detected in someone’s body up to 22 days after it has been used. When it comes to the annual number of new users, this too has increased in the last 20 years. For instance, in 1975, there were 30,000 new users. However, in 2000, there were 361,000 new users. This number is only getting larger.

In the past five years, the rate of cocaine use by college students has risen from 2 percent of all students in the year 1994, to almost 5 percent of students in the year 2000. When it comes to high school students, in 2001, it was noted that 8.2 percent of seniors had used cocaine.

From the years of 1997 to 2000, cocaine was listed as the most common drug reported in emergency room visits. This number is much higher than in the past, and if trends keep going the same way they are, it is only going to get higher.

Also, when it comes to use between the sexes, cocaine use among men is almost two times that of among women. The office of National Drug Control Policy estimates the number of chronic cocaine users at 3.6 million.

Adults that are 18 to 25 years old currently have the highest number of cocaine users than any other age group. Also, cocaine has been proven to be a drug whose use has resulted from abuse of other substances. 90 percent of cocaine users report that they had smoked cigarettes, used alcohol or marijuana or other drugs before trying cocaine.