Teen Drug Use History

History / Definition

 Drugs have a long and notorious history for altering minds. Drugs are used as a way of escaping reality and disappearing into another world.

 In this speech, I will assist you in understanding the history and definitions of various drugs. My proposed findings are based upon information I have gathered from a variety of what I believed to be reputable and credible sources.

 Therefore, according to Professor Blum, from the University of Chicago the original home of cannabis is thought to be Central Asia, but has spread around the globe with the exception of the Arctic regions and areas of wet tropical forests.

 Early in its history—the Chinese undoubtedly used it as a hallucinogen. 1500 years later when they had their first contact with Europeans the drug had fallen into decline. However, its value had become a primary source of fiber and there is record of hemp cultivation dating back to Neolithic times.

 The United States declared marijuana as an illegal drug in 1937. It has been a source of great controversy ever since.

 Another popular drug widely used in the United States is cocaine. Cocaine is extracted from the leaves of a plant called E-Coca. E-Coca, a bushy shrub native to South American countries at high altitudes. Cocaine is the primary alkaloid in these leaves. In addition, Sigmund Freud, the famous psychoanalyst, used cocaine to treat many of his patients, later he himself became an addict. Cocaine was found to have a numbing effect, therefore it was introduced as an anesthetic by Carl Koller. Cocaine use fell off for various reasons, before it reemerged in the late 1970s. Though touted as the “perfect drug,” it has ruined many lives.

 Next, lysergic acid diethylamide, commonly known as (LSD) was created in 1943 by Albert Hofmann. This drug gained huge popularity in the 1960s. Hofmann’s description of his experience while testing the drug was a pleasant intoxication-like feeling that extremely...