CS - Drugs and Addiction Lesson
Drugs and Addiction
Many people take psychoactive drugs every day: caffeinated coffee to wake up, alcohol to relax or have fun, melatonin to get to sleep, pain pills to deal with pain. These drugs all work the same way, by manipulating neurotransmitters and causing neurons to fire or stop firing.
Most drugs work by acting in one of these ways.
- Agonist: Agonists cause a neuron to fire by acting like a neurotransmitter that fits in the dendrites of a neuron.
- Antagonist: Antagonists stop a neuron from firing by covering the dendrites so no neurotransmitters can attach to them.
- Reuptake Inhibitors: Reuptake Inhibitors cover the terminal buttons of the axon, keeping them from reabsorbing leftover neurotransmitters after the neuron has fired. This causes the next neuron to fire repeatedly.
Long-term changes to brain structure can be produced by chronic use. Most of psychoactive drugs cause tolerance; over time the user needs an increased amount of the drug to achieve the desired effect. Tolerance will eventually cause withdrawal symptoms, which vary from drug to drug, but typically include physical pain and intense cravings for the drug.
Complete the drug categories activity below:
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