A
drug is any substance that can be used to treat an illness, relieve a symptom or modify a chemical process in the body for a specific purpose.
The term is necessarily a vague one, being defined by intent: for example,
foods consumed for normal metabolism are not generally considered "drugs", but the same foods consumed for a more specific purpose (such as the use of alcohol as a depressant or caffeine as a stimulant) may be.
Opiates are also used as recreational drugs. They are very addictive.
Acetaminophen? and other non-Opiate painkillers are often used in drug mixes for recreational puproses.
- Recreational drugs (to alter mood or body function for recreation).
- Performance-enhancing drugs (for sport or combat?).
Many enhancing drugs are also used for recreational purposes.
Regulations
Usage of most of drugs is regulated to some extent.
While details vary with location, these are somewhat usual regulations:
Not regulated:
Regulated to some extent (age requirements, for example):
- Alcohol (Although in some nations (generally with an Islamic background) Alcohol might be prohibited)
- Nicotine?
- Ephedrine?
- Taurine?
- Inhalants?
- Anabolic Steroid?s
- Acetaminophen?
- Codeine?
Prohibited for non-medical use:
Varies from tolerated to prohibited even for medical use:
Varies from prohibited for non-medical use to prohibited for any use
Prohibited for any use, no medical uses currently allowed most of the time
UN Documents
Three international UN treaties regulate drug laws:
The UN Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention (http://www.undcp.org/) is charged with overseeing these treaties and maintains a list of signatory nations at http://www.undcp.org/treaty_adherence.html.
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