Help and advice for parents and carers

If you're worried that someone you know is or might be using drugs, it's helpful to find out a bit more about drugs and their effects.

Here you can find a quick introduction to some of the most commonly used drugs (plus some of the drugs that cause the most worry). For a helpful guide to most drugs, the risks of taking them, their legal status and their effects visit the A - Z of drugs on the FRANK website.

Alcohol

• Alcohol is one of the most commonly used drugs in the UK - even though it is legal and widely available it is still very powerful.
• Alcohol is a depressant - it slows down your responses, which explains why it can make you clumsy and why it's dangerous to drink and drive.
• Like many drugs, alcohol will exaggerate whatever mood you're in - if you were happy to start with, alcohol can make you even happier. If you were feeling down when you started drinking, you'll probably feel even more miserable after you've had a few.
• Alcohol can reduce your inhibitions, so small amounts can help people feel relaxed and less shy - but too much can leave you doing things you'd never normally do, perhaps even putting yourself at risk.
• Too much alcohol and you could be slurring your words, being sick and could have a hangover the next day. Too much alcohol, too often and you can seriously damage your health - causing liver damage, hearts problems or even death.

Tobacco

• Tobacco is another very commonly used drug - it is made from the leaves of the tobacco plant and contains nicotine, which is highly addictive. As well as nicotine, the average cigarette contains over 400 chemicals.
• Smokers say that it helps them relax and stops them feeling hungry.
• However, it also raises people's blood pressure, increases the heart rate and can cause a number of long term health problems.
• These include asthma, breathing problems, heart disease and cancer.

Cannabis

• Cannabis is probably the most commonly used illegal drug in the UK.
• In 2004, the drug was reclassified as a Class C drug - this means that it is still illegal and people can still be arrested for using it.
• Many people use cannabis for its sedative-like effects - it can help people to relax and can be used to help people come down from the effects of stimulant drugs.
• Whilst cannabis is generally considered to be less harmful than other drugs, it can make some people feel sick, anxious or paranoid.
• Cannabis affects your short-term memory and can make you lethargic - which can cause problems for people trying to study or work.
• Cannabis appears to cause some mental health problems and can cause problems for people who have a history of mental ill health in the family.

Ecstasy

• Ecstasy is a white powder, made up of the chemical called MDMA. It is normally sold in tablet form and these can be any size or colour, with pictures or logos stamped on them.
• It can take around half an hour to feel the effects of ecstasy, which can then last for up to six hours.
• People feel alert and lively, users do not feel tired and find their sensations are heightened - colours and music seem particularly vivid.
• Ecstasy also raises body temperature and can make people experience panic attacks and epileptic fits.
• Often used in clubs because people using ecstasy do not experience tiredness and can dance for hours, people can be at risk of overheating and dehydration.
• Alternately, people can drink too much and can become ill - or even die - as the drug can prevent people from urinating and the body cannot cope with the amount of liquid being consumed.

Cocaine & Crack

• Cocaine is a powerful stimulant drug with short-lived effects.
• Cocaine is available as a powder, where crack is a smokeable form of the powder made into small lumps or rocks. Crack is stronger and more addictive than cocaine.
• Cocaine can make people feel wide awake, strong and very confident
• It also raises people's body temperature, makes the heart beat faster and can cause heart problems - even young, healthy people can have heart attacks from using cocaine.
• When the effects start to wear off, people often crave more and easily get addicted to the feeling.
• The come down from both cocaine and crack can leave people feeling anxious, depressed and paranoid - crack is stronger, and the comedown from it is worse than the comedown from cocaine.

Heroin

• Heroin comes from the opium poppy and is a very strong painkiller.
• It can be smoked, snorted or injected.
• It is a depressant that slows down body functions, helping people block out pain and problems as it can make people experience a sense of well being and helps people relax.
• As people use heroin, it can take more and more of the drug to get the same experience of warmth and relaxation and can result in dependence on the drug.
• People can overdose on heroin as it slows down - and can stop - people's breathing. The risk is higher if people have a break from heroin, as tolerance to the drug drops quickly. After a break, the amount that people took daily could now be enough to kill.
• When people inject heroin, they are at risk of illnesses such as Hepatitis C, it can cause gangrene and can lead to serious health problems.