A common categorization of hard and soft drugs

Hard and soft drugs are loose categories of non-prescription psychoactive drugs. A psychoactive drug or psychotropic substance is a Chemical substance that acts primarily upon the Central nervous system where it alters Brain This distinction is used in both official and casual discourse. The term hard drug generally refers to drugs illegal for nonmedical use that lead to profound and severe addiction, as opposed to soft drugs that has weaker or no physical withdrawal symptoms. The term " addiction " is used in many contexts to describe an obsession compulsion or excessive Physical dependence or psychological dependence such as Some so-called soft drugs are however strongly habit-forming for other reasons than physical withdrawal symptoms; the dividing up between hard and soft drugs is therefore only accepted in the legislation in certain countries, such as Netherlands. In the Netherlands the national drug policy has officially four major objectives To prevent drug use and to treat and rehabilitate drug users The executive director of UNODC, for example, does not accept cannabis as a soft drug. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC is a United Nations agency that was established in 1997 as the Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention ^[1] Classification of alcohol and nicotine as hard drugs is also commonly rejected in most countries.

A large part of the distinction is a subjective, socially conceived notion of the consequences of usage for each. Depending on context, a particular drug can be categorized in many different ways for various reasons.

Hard drugs

Examples of hard drugs include heroin, morphine, cocaine, amphetamines, alcohol, and nicotine (tobacco). Heroin ( INN: diacetylmorphine, BAN: diamorphine) is a semi-synthetic opioid synthesized from Morphine, a derivative Medical uses Morphine can be used as an analgesic in hospital settings to relieve pain in Myocardial infarction pain in Cocaine ( benzoylmethyl ecgonine) is a Crystalline Tropane Alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the Coca plant Amphetamine, and related drugs such as Methamphetamine are a group of drugs that act by increasing levels of Norepinephrine, Serotonin, and Dopamine Nicotine is an Alkaloid found in the Nightshade family of plants ( Solanaceae) which constitutes approximately 0 Tobacco is an Agricultural product recognized as an addictive drug processed from the fresh Leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. Drugs in this group are generally described as being physically addictive, easier to overdose on, and/or posing serious health and social risks, including death. Most, if not all, of these drugs are stimulants or depressants. Stimulant drugs are Drugs that temporarily increase alertness and awareness Depressant is a chemical agent that diminishes the function or activity of a specific part of the body (see also Sedative) Some of these drugs (alcohol and tobacco) can be freely purchased by adults; some can be purchased only with a doctor's prescription, and two (heroin and cocaine) are generally illegal, although cocaine is sometimes used legally as a local anesthetic and heroin is legally used as an analgesic in some countries: for example, the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located A few analgesics even stronger than heroin—notably, fentanyl—are widely used in the U. Fentanyl is one of the most powerful Opioid Analgesics with a potency approximately 81 times that of Morphine. S. , but are usually administered directly by doctors.

Ketamine is sometimes thought of as being a hard drug, as it is the only addictive hallucinogen; it is also possible to overdose when taking the substance. Ketamine is a drug for use in human and veterinary medicine developed by Parke-Davis (today a part of Pfizer) in 1962 The general group of pharmacological agents commonly known as hallucinogens can be divided into three broad categories Psychedelics, Dissociatives The term drug overdose (or simply overdose or OD) describes the Ingestion or application of a Drug or other substance in quantities

By some, all strong psychedelics (LSD, Magic Mushrooms, Mescaline, Salvia, etc. Mescaline or 345-trimethoxyphenethylamine is a naturally-occurring Psychedelic Alkaloid of the Phenethylamine class Salvia is a Genus of plants in the mint family Lamiaceae. It is one of three genera commonly referred to as sage. ) are considered to have the potential to be in this grouping, because of the perceived possibility that psychological trauma or personality change can result from their use. However, scientific studies do not support this.

In between "hard drugs" and "soft drugs"

Not all drugs fit under the "hard drug" or "soft drug" label. Examples of these include MDMA, Ketamine, and caffeine. MDMA ( 34-methylenedioxy- N -methylamphetamine) most commonly known today by the street name Ecstasy (often abbreviated E, X, Ketamine is a drug for use in human and veterinary medicine developed by Parke-Davis (today a part of Pfizer) in 1962 Caffeine is a bitter white crystalline Xanthine Alkaloid that acts as a Psychoactive Stimulant Drug and a mild Diuretic MDMA shares some features with soft drugs in that it doesn't produce physical addiction. Some studies however say that it might be psychologically addictive, though such a claim is very controversial in the medical community. The term " addiction " is used in many contexts to describe an obsession compulsion or excessive Physical dependence or psychological dependence such as It is also easier to overdose on than many soft drugs, though not as much as many hard drugs.

Caffeine, although legal and unregulated in nearly all jurisdictions, does have a mild addiction potential (both physical and psychological) that can lead to caffeinism. Caffeine is a bitter white crystalline Xanthine Alkaloid that acts as a Psychoactive Stimulant Drug and a mild Diuretic Its overdose potential is also higher than that of soft drugs, though nowhere near hard drugs. If used often, caffeine can also give rise to bodily stress, ulcers, and irregular heartbeat, which can sometimes lead to death, though more deaths occur from overdose. Despite this, caffeine is still safer than most hard drugs. Caffeine is the most widely used psychoactive drug in the world.

Soft drugs

Examples of soft drugs include cannabis, DMT, mescaline, psilocybin, and LSD. Cannabis, also known as marijuana or marihuana, or ganja (from Hindi / Sanskrit: गांजा gānjā hemp) is a Mescaline or 345-trimethoxyphenethylamine is a naturally-occurring Psychedelic Alkaloid of the Phenethylamine class Psilocybin (IPA /saɪləˈsaɪbɪn/ (also known as psilocybine) is a psychedelic Indole of the Tryptamine family found in Psilocybin MDMA and caffeine are sometimes included as soft drugs, see above. MDMA ( 34-methylenedioxy- N -methylamphetamine) most commonly known today by the street name Ecstasy (often abbreviated E, X, Caffeine is a bitter white crystalline Xanthine Alkaloid that acts as a Psychoactive Stimulant Drug and a mild Diuretic The term soft drug is most usually applied to cannabis (marijuana or hashish). Cannabis, also known as marijuana or marihuana, or ganja (from Hindi / Sanskrit: गांजा gānjā hemp) is a Hashish (from Arabic: ar حشيش, lit "grass" also hash) is a preparation of cannabis composed of the compressed

The distinction between soft drugs and hard drugs is important in the drug policy of the Netherlands, where cannabis production, retailing and use come under official tolerance, subject to certain conditions. In the Netherlands the national drug policy has officially four major objectives To prevent drug use and to treat and rehabilitate drug users A cannabis Coffeeshop is a place where the sale of cannabis and Hashish for personal consumption by the public is tolerated by the local Other drugs such as psilocybin mushrooms and LSD are also considered soft drugs by many because there is no evidence of physical addiction, and a toxic overdose on these substances requires in some cases, hundreds of times a normal dose. A drug, broadly speaking is any chemical substance that when absorbed into the body However, it is possible for one to take more than one is psychologically capable of handling, which leads to dangerous situations and negative experiences. Bad trip is a slang term for a psychedelic crisis, a disturbing experience sometimes associated with use of a psychedelic drug such as LSD, salvinorin

See also

• Drug policy of the Netherlands
• Designer drugs
• The Rhetoric of Drugs

Sources