What is Cocaine and Why is it Important?
Cocaine is a recreational illicit drug, like caffeine and Adderall. Cocaine is a stimulant, meaning it increases heart rate, increases energy, and allows the user to hyperfocus. According to the National Institute of Drug Abuse, over 4 million people ages 12 or older use cocaine in the US (NIDA, 2023). And Cocaine production skyrocketed in 2021 for a production increase of 35% (Turak, 2023). With an increase in cocaine production and use comes an increase in harmful physiological effects.
How Does Cocaine Work in the Brain and Body?
Many people use cocaine for the positive effects it causes, such as high energy or an extreme sense of euphoria even if it only lasts for a short period of time.
Cocaine can have several pathways to get into the body. Most people snort it in its powder form. Some use the powder and rub it on their gums; this pathway numbs the mouth. Some people also smoke crack cocaine; this is cocaine in its solid, more pure form. Smoking crack cocaine acts faster than snorting or rubbing it on the gums, however, the effect depletes much quicker when smoking.
Cocaine affects the neurotransmitters in the brain which leads to a physical effect. It primarily affects dopamine, the neurotransmitter responsible for motivation and pleasure. Cocaine inhibits the ability for dopamine to degrade away after a certain amount of time, so rather than your body returning back to normal, it forces a dopamine build-up in the brain causing a long-lasting, more intense sense of euphoria.
The long-lasting dopamine in the brain causes an increase in heart–rate, increased energy, increase in sex drive, decrease in appetite, and more. While it may feel good in the short term, long-term usage can cause detrimental effects to the body.
Long-Term Effects of Cocaine Usage
While many people use cocaine for its temporary, positive effects, they ignore the detrimental long-term effects in the body and brain that come with it.
In a 2019 Medical Journal, it was revealed that heavy cocaine usage was linked to several heart diseases such as acute hypertension, acute myocardial infarction, atherosclerosis, coronary artery disease, as well as other bodily issues such as hypertension and diabetes (Kim, S. T., and Park, T. 2019). Acute hypertension is categorized as an extreme spike in blood pressure; this is caused by cocaine’s construction of arteries in the body. Acute myocardial infarction is the formal name for a heart attack. The increase in heart rate combined with the constricted vesicles leads to tissue death in the heart causing a heart attack which at times can be fatal. Atherosclerosis is the buildup of cholesterol in the walls of the artery. This restricts blood flow more and in extreme cases can lead to a blood clot. Coronary artery disease is a more severe case of atherosclerosis. The build-up of atherosclerosis causes damage to major arterial vessels which if not treated properly can result in death. The after-effects of cocaine also affect the user’s diet: after the effect had worn off users craved high-fat foods and carbohydrates, and when the users took a blood test they found low levels of HDL, the good cholesterol, and high levels of LDL, the bad cholesterol. They also found a spike in blood sugar. A build-up of high levels of LDL leads to a greater risk of heart attack, stroke, and death. A buildup of blood sugar in the body can lead to an increased risk of diabetes.
The Takeaway
While the production of use and cocaine has seen an increase, it should be noted that the long-term effects outweigh the short-lived pleasure received from it. Cocaine can lead to several severe heart diseases, high blood pressure, diabetes, and mental issues.
References
NIDA. 2023, December 14. What is the scope of cocaine use in the United States? . Retrieved from https://nida.nih.gov/publications/research-reports/cocaine/what-scope-cocaine-use-in-united-states on 2024, February 25, 2024
Turak, N. (2023, March 16). Cocaine production is at its highest level on record, Un says. CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2023/03/16/cocaine-production-is-at-its-highest-level-on-record-un-says-.html
Kim, S. T., & Park, T. (2019). Acute and Chronic Effects of Cocaine on Cardiovascular Health. International journal of molecular sciences, 20(3), 584. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms20030584