Psychoactive drug
| Subclass of | central nervous system agent, drug  |
|---|
A psychoactive drug, psychopharmaceutical,[1] mind-altering drug, consciousness-altering drug, psychoactive substance,[2] anaa psychotropic substance[2] be a chemical substance wey dey alter psychological functioning by modulating central nervous system (CNS) activity.[2][3] Psychoactive den psychotropic drugs both dey affect de brain, wey psychotropics sam times dey refer to psychiatric drugs anaa high-abuse substances, while “drug” fi get negative connotations. Novel psychoactive substances be designer drugs dem make to mimic illegal ones den bypass laws.
Psychoactive drug use dey date back to prehistory for medicinal den consciousness-altering purposes, plus evidence of widespread cultural use. Chaw animals intentionally dey consume psychoactive substances, den sam traditional legends dey suggest animals first introduce humans to dema use. Dem dey use psychoactive substances across cultures for purposes wey dey range from medicinal den therapeutic treatment of mental disorders den pain, to performance enhancement. Dema effects be influenced by de drug einself, de environment, den individual factors. Psychoactive drugs be categorized by dema pharmacological effects into types such as anxiolytics (reduce anxiety), empathogen–entactogens (enhance empathy), stimulants (increase CNS activity), depressants (decrease CNS activity), den hallucinogens (alter perception den emotions). Psychoactive drugs be administered thru various routes—wey dey include oral ingestion, injection, rectal use, den inhalation—plus de method den efficiency dey differ by drug.
Psychoactive drugs dey alter brain function by interacting plus neurotransmitter systems—either enhancing anaa inhibiting activity—wich fi affect mood, perception, cognition, behavior, den potentially lead to dependence anaa long-term neural adaptations such as sensitization anaa tolerance. Addiction den dependence dey involve psychological den physical reliance on psychoactive substances, plus treatments wey dey range from psychotherapy den medication to emerging psychedelic therapies; global prevalence be highest for alcohol, cannabis, den opioid use disorders.
Na de legality of psychoactive drugs long be controversial, shaped by international treaties like de 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs den national laws such as de United States Controlled Substances Act. Dem dey make distinctions between recreational den medical use. Enforcement dey vary across countries. While na de 20th century see global criminalization, recent shifts dey favor harm reduction den regulation over prohibition. Widely used psychoactive drugs dey include legal substances like caffeine, alcohol, den nicotine; prescribed medications such as SSRIs, opioids, den benzodiazepines; den illegal recreational drugs like cocaine, LSD, den MDMA.
References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ Raman, Rameela; Jarrett, Ryan T.; Cull, Michael J.; Gracey, Kathy; Shaffer, April M.; Epstein, Richard A. (2021-03-01). "Psychopharmaceutical Prescription Monitoring for Children in the Child Welfare System". Psychiatric Services (in English). 72 (3): 295–301. doi:10.1176/appi.ps.202000077. ISSN 1075-2730. PMID 33467871.
- 1 2 3 "psychoactive substance". www.cancer.gov (in English). 2011-02-02. Retrieved 2025-05-24.
- ↑ "CHAPTER 1 Alcohol and Other Drugs". The Public Health Bush Book: Facts & approaches to three key public health issues. Territory Health Services. 1999. ISBN 0-7245-3361-3. Archived from the original on 2015-03-28.
External links
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