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Schule > Englisch > Ausarbeitungen, Interpretationen und Zusammenfassungen > Presentation: Cigarettes, alcohol and drugs

Cigarettes, alcohol and drugs

Drugs can divide into 2 groups: legal and illegal drugs.
Legal drugs are cigarettes, alcohol and medicines.
Illegal drugs are ecstasy, LSD, cocaine, cannabis and so on.

Cigarettes:

Why do people smoke?

Many people who smoke enjoy the taste and aroma of tobacco and tobacco smoke.
Many smokers say that it helps them to relax. It calms the nerves. It´s also good for your digestion. Many smokers also smoke from habit.

Tobacco and the human body

Nicotine is a very powerful drug and is the addictive agent in cigarettes. Nicotine stimulates the nervous system and causes a craving for tobacco. It increases the blood pressure and the heart rate. It also increases the tendency of blood to clot.
Tobacco tar contains a number of cancer-producing substances. When tobacco smoke is inhaled it coats the lungs with tar. The further a cigarette is smoked, the more tar and nicotine is inhaled. The last third of a cigarette produces more tar and nicotine than the first two thirds put together.
Carbon Monoxide is the deadly gas that is present in car exhaust fumes. It is also present in cigarette smoke. It affects the blood´s ability to carry oxygen round the body.

Health risks

·for the Teeth: The teeth of heavy smokers may become yellow from nicotine stains. Their breath often smells.
· for the Lungs: Smoking can damage the lungs so badly that a person cannot breathe properly. Many smokers suffer from bronchitis or asthma. Also lung cancer is the result of smoking.
·and for the Heart: Smoking causes many deaths from coronary heart disease. Smoking weakens the heart muscle and produces diseases of the arteries.

What can we do against young smokers?

I think no advertisement for cigarettes in the television, radio or
Newspapers is a good way. More controls in supermarkets are very important, too. I believe the clearing-up of the children am most important thing which we can do against the cigarette consumption.

Alcohol

Alcohol is a chemical obtained by the fermentation of cereals, milk or fruit, or by distillation. It´s an element present in a wide range of drinks. The alcohol content varies according to the drink. Alcohol has many industrial uses and is used in the manufacture of explosives, perfumes and lacquers and it’s a solvent, too. If a human being has too much alcohol, he can die from alcoholic poisoning. It´s a drug, which can alter the mind and the body work.
People drink alcohol to celebrate, to relax, to be sociable, to feel adult and manly, because all others do it, because they are bored, because they enjoy the feeling they get from drinking, because they like the taste or because they like going out.

Health risks:

The nervous system is stimulated. Alcohol serves as tranquilizer and slows down the way the brain works. Large doses make a person sleepy. Another health risk develops for the heart. Alcohol increases a person´s blood pressure and pulse rate. Large amounts over a long time can damage the heart and make it weak and fatty. The liver is also affected by the alcohol abuse. alcohol passes through the liver on its way into the bloodstream and it damage the liver. Heavy drinkers die more often from cirrhosis of the liver than the general population.
Something alcohol helps the stomach with digesting but to much alcohol irritate the stomach and cause vomiting.

Alcohol affects a person in different ways. The rate at which a person gets drunk depends on how quickly the alcohol enters the bloodstream. The presence of food in the stomach slows down the rate at which alcohol passes into the rest of the body. A certain number of drinks taken during a meal may not make a person drunk. The same drinks, taken on their own, might make the person drunk.

Alcohol is habit-forming. Having a few drinks is not dangerous in itself, so long as a person keeps the amount under control. But someone who is a regular heavy drinker may reach the stage when he cannot do without alcohol.
A person who is physically or psychologically dependent on alcohol is called an alcoholic. Alcoholism is an illness.

Regular heavy drinking can affect the mind as well as the body. A person´s memory of recent events may fail. Permanent brain damage can occur. If a heavy drinker stop drinking he may suffer withdrawal symptoms. He also may suffer from DTs ( delirium tremens ). During an attack of DTs, the alcoholic´s mind is confused. He is afraid of being attacked by imaginary creatures. He doesn´t know where he is and he can´t recognise people.
The presence of alcohol in the bloodstream affects a person´s driving skill. Many accidents are caused by drunken drivers. People who are drunk often commit crimes and drunken husbands often beat their wives under the influence of alcohol.
Alcohol also can cause problems at home, at work, the breakdown of personal relationships, financial difficulties and the chance of an early death. You spend a lot of money on it and you become unreliable.
Alcoholism is an illness, which can be controlled, once the alcoholic is willing to accept that he is ill and needs treatment for alcoholism. It can only be controlled if the person gives up drinking for life.

What can be done against the alcohol abuse?

I am the opinion that we must do the same as we do against the cigarette abuse. And in restaurants no alcohol may be poured out to children.

Drugs and the symptoms:

Alcohol, Barbiturates-downers, Tranquillisers-valium, Gases and solvents-glues depress the nervous system. Effects: These drugs make you feel less tense and more relaxed. But you work less well mentally and physically and you lose self-control. Large amounts can make you drunk, feel drowsy or send you to sleep or unconscious. You can become psychologically and physically dependent and the more often you use them, the more you need to get the desired effects.
Opiates-opium, morphine are drugs that reduce pain. Effects: You feel less pain and worry. But you get to need higher and more frequent doses and you become physically and psychologically dependent. You become very moody and you may have problems with breathing, constipation and irregular periods

Amphetamines-speed, Cocaine-crack, Caffeine-coffee, Tobacco, LSD-acid are stimulate the nervous system. Effects: These make you feel more alert, you are able to stay awake and active longer without becoming tired or sleepy. But later you become depressed, hungry and tired. If you use it very often it makes you anxious, agitated and you are unable to sleep. You also can become psychologically dependent.
Mushrooms, Cannabis-grass, and marijuana are drugs that alter perception . These make all your senses more intense and you get a feeling of unreality. They also can cause panic or anxiety. But there´s no risk of physical dependency, but repeated use may cause temporary psychological disturbance.

Health risks

Crime: Once a person is hooked, the craving for drugs can become so great that a drug dependent would do anything to get money so that he can buy them. Girls may turn to prostitution, boys to mugging or they might even steal from their parents.
Family: A person on drugs often becomes moody. His relationship with his parents or friends may become strained and may break down altogether.
Work-Job: drug taking may affect one´s work. It may become difficult to concentrate and the sack may be the result.
Health: drug taking may affect a person´s health. He may become so dependent on drugs that he becomes physically ill. Especially people on injected drugs often catch infections from sharing needles, which often leads to fatal diseases like AIDS. Most addicts die from overdoses, accidents and lethal mixtures of drugs. Other effects that are harmful to health are: unconsciousness, problems while breathing, panic attacks, physical deterioration, depression and anxiety, lose self-control, act drunk, death and psychological dependence-you are dependend on the psychological effects of drugs which means that you are less sensitive to pain and worry, you are very moody, feel more alert, able to stay awake and active longer without becoming tired, feel tense and more relaxed , give you a feeling of unreality.

Examples:

Cannabis:
Cannabis is perhaps the most widely used psychedelic in human history, with a corresponding variety of methods of ingestion. Cannabis can be smoked, eaten, or drank, in a number of different ways. While opponents claim that the drug is addictive and dangerous, supporters claim that in 10,000 years no one has ever died from marijuana use.

Cocaine:
Cocaine is a powerful central nervous system stimulant that heightens alertness, inhibits appetite and the need for sleep, and provides intense feelings of pleasure. High danger of addictiveness.

Ecstasy:
Ecstasy has become the drug of choice for raves around the world. It produces a unique experience of emotional bonding and exuberant happiness.

Now I am finished with the lecture and have a paper for you. There stands briefly the most important facts.

Arbeitsblatt:

Drugs

One can divide drugs into 2 parts. Illegal drugs and legal. Legal drugs are: cigarettes, alcohol and medicine. Illegal drugs are: Ecstasy, LSD, cocaine, cannabis and so on.

Reasons for taking legal and illegal drugs:

- weak personality
- peer pressure
- problems with family, friends, job or in school
- like the effects
- want to rebel against parents
- a better life promise

Consequences of drug taking:

- Crime – People steal over at money for drugs to arrive.
- Family - is against the drug consumption. Relations suffers under the
consumption of the drugs...
- Job/school - Concentration is missing, no desire…
- Health - dependent to drugs, catch infections from sharing needles e.g. AIDS, panic attacks,
lose self- Control, depression, problems with breathing, physical deterioration, less
sensitive to pain and worry, feeling of unreality and able so stay awake for a long
time.
- withdrawal symptoms

Symptoms:

-depress the nervous system
- reduce pain
- stimulate the nervous system
- alter perception
- feel better, sleepy

How they can be taken:
As pills, tablets, injections, drink, sniffed, smoked, cooked

A few examples:
Alcohol: alcohol is taken as a drink. In Germany you can by beer and wine with 16 and liquor and others with 18.

Barbiturates: To get barbiturates you need a prescription. You take it as pills.

Cocaine: The possession is illegal. Cocaine is sniffed or injected and crack is smoked

Mushrooms: Sometimes you use them for medical purposes. You have to eat them raw or cooked .

Cannabis: It´s illegal to possess cannabis and to let people smoke it on your piece of land. You smoke marijuana on its own and hash in cigarettes with tobacco or in a pipe or it can be eaten in cakes or other foods.

Glossary:

No desire - Keine Lust
Sharing - Teilen
Breathing - Atmung
Withdrawal - Entzugserscheinungen
alter perception - ändern das Vorstellungsvermögen
Barbiturates - Schmerzmittel oder Beruhigungsmittel
Prescription - Rezept

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