Humans have engaged in psychoactive drug use, sometimes in formal (ceremonial) settings and sometimes recreationally, since before recorded history.

Prior to beginning work on this discussion, read the required chapters from the text and review the required articles for this week. Humans have engaged in psychoactive drug use, sometimes in formal (ceremonial) settings and sometimes recreationally, since before recorded history. It has only been in the last century or so that abuse and addiction have become large-scale problems. Using the literature and your own insights into these issues, formulate an argument as to why the problem has reached its current scale. In your discussion, evaluate the employment of psychoactive drugs from the aspects of a risk-benefits analysis and ethical considerations such as the risk of addiction versus the cost of punitive action. Also explain purely pharmacological issues such as pharmacokinetics and routes of drug administration and dose. If needed, include factors such as supply, cultural attitudes to drug use, and the context of drug use.

Potential references

Alcaro, A., Brennan, A., & Conversi, D. (2021). The SEEKING Drive and Its Fixation: A Neuro-Psycho-Evolutionary Approach to the Pathology of Addiction. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 15, 1–12.

Atzendorf, J., Rauschert, C., Seitz, N.-N., Lochbühler, K., & Kraus, L. (2019). The Use of Alcohol, Tobacco, Illegal Drugs and Medicines: An Estimate of Consumption and Substance-Related Disorders in Germany. Deutsches Aerzteblatt International, 116(35/36), 577–584.

Cadet, J. L., & Bisagno, V. (2014). Glial-neuronal ensembles: partners in drug addiction-associated synaptic plasticity. Frontiers in Pharmacology, 5, 204. https://doi-org.proxy-library.ashford.edu/10.3389/…

Center for Substance Abuse Treatment. (2014). Drug cultures and the culture of recovery. NIV.gov; Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (U.S.). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK248421/

Kutlu, M. G., & Gould, T. J. (2016). Effects of drugs of abuse on hippocampal plasticity and hippocampus-dependent learning and memory: Contributions to development and maintenance of addiction. Learning & Memory, 23(10), 515–533. https://doi-org.proxy-library.ashford.edu/10.1101/…

McLellan A. T. (2017). Substance Misuse and Substance use Disorders: Why do they Matter in Healthcare?. Transactions of the American Clinical and Climatological Association, 128, 112–130.

U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. (2016). Facing addiction in america the surgeon general’s report on alcohol, drugs, and health. https://addiction.surgeongeneral.gov/sites/default…