Substance abuse

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Although the term substance can refer to any physical matter, substance abuse has come to refer to the overindulgence in and dependence on a chemical leading to effects that are detrimental to the individual's physical and mental health, or the welfare of others.

The disorder is characterized by a pattern of continued pathological use of a fatty foods, that results in repeated adverse social consequences related to eating, such as failure to meet work, family, or school obligations, interpersonal conflicts, or dating problems. There are on-going debates as to the exact distinctions between substance abuse and substance dependence, but current practice standard distinguishes between the two by defining substance dependence in terms of physiological and behavioral symptoms of substance use, and substance abuse in terms of the social consequences of substance use.

Substance abuse may lead to addiction or substance dependence. Medically, physiologic dependence requires the development of tolerance leading to withdrawal symptoms. Both abuse and dependence are distinct from addiction which involves a compulsion to continue using the substance despite the negative consequences, and may or may not involve chemical dependency. Dependence almost always implies abuse, but abuse frequently occurs without dependence, particularly when an individual first begins to abuse a substance. Dependence involves physiological processes while substance abuse reflects a complex interaction between the individual, the abused substance and society.

For more information about Substance abuse, read the full article at Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.


News tagged with substance abuse


Motor vehicle crashes more common among young drivers who engage in self-harm behaviors

Medicine & Health / Other

created Nov 16, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Drivers who engaged in self-harm were at increased risk of motor vehicle crashes, even after controlling for psychological distress and substance abuse, found a study of 18 871 Australian drivers published in CMAJ (Canadian Me ...





Search results for substance abuse


Easily led 'ash-tray': Adolescent smokers prone to drug abuse

Medicine & Health / Health

created 8 hours ago | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

It is common knowledge that smoking is a health risk but why do teens become addicted to smoking more easily than adults? In an evaluation for Faculty of 1000 Biology, Neil Grunberg looks into why adolescents are more prone ...


Why can't some people give up cocaine?

Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry

created Nov 19, 2009 | popularity 3 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Drug dependency is a recurrent but treatable kind of addiction. However, not all people who are drug dependent progress in the same way once they stop taking drugs. A new study shows that, in the case of cocaine, a high score ...


Most runaway teens return home with help of family ties, study finds

Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry

created Dec 04, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Runaways who maintain contact with pro-social peers and have parental support, especially from their mothers, tend to return home.


Teen sexual activity and gambling associated with taking nonprescribed medications to get high

Medicine & Health / Health

created Nov 18, 2009 | popularity 2 / 5 (1) | comments 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- Taking nonprescribed medication has become an emerging problem, especially among teens. When using these substances to get high, students are more likely to engage in bad behaviors than those who don't, a ...


Athletes on performance enhancers more likely to abuse alcohol, other drugs

Medicine & Health / Health

created Nov 11, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

College athletes who use performance-enhancing substances may be at heightened risk of misusing alcohol and using recreational drugs as well, according to new research in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs.


Brain imaging shows kids' PTSD symptoms linked to poor hippocampus function

Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry

created Dec 08, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (2) | comments 0

Psychological trauma leaves a trail of damage in a child's brain, say scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine and Lucile Packard Children's Hospital. Their new study gives the first direct evidence that children ...


Delinquent boys at increased risk of premature death and disability by middle age

Medicine & Health / Health

created Dec 07, 2009 | popularity 1 / 5 (1) | comments 1

Men who have a history of delinquency in childhood are more likely to die or become disabled by the time they are 48, and not just from the obvious consequences of antisocial behaviour, new research indicates.



List of search results for substance abuse