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Employees who fall under Federal guidelines such as the Department of Transportation’s testing regulations are prohibited from using cocaine in any form. The addictive nature and cost can lead to workplace theft and/or dealing. Work performance is erratic with periods of high performance and periods characterized by forgetfulness, absenteeism and missed assignments.
Cocaine is the world's most powerful stimulant drug of natural origin. Cocaine is snorted, sniffed, injected, or smoked and according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, adults 18 to 25 years old have the highest rate of current cocaine use, compared to other age groups.
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Treatment The widespread abuse of cocaine has stimulated extensive efforts to develop treatment programs for this type of drug abuse. One of the top research priorities is to find a medication to block or greatly reduce the effects of cocaine, to be used as one part of a comprehensive treatment program. Researchers are also looking at medications that help alleviate the severe craving that people in treatment for cocaine addiction often experience. Several medications are currently being investigated for their safety and efficacy in treating cocaine addiction. In addition to treatment medications, behavioral interventions particularly cognitive behavioral therapy can be effective in decreasing drug use by patients in treatment for cocaine abuse. Providing the optimal combination of treatment and services for each individual is critical to successful outcomes.
According to the 2004 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, approximately 34.2 million Americans ages 12 and older had tried cocaine at least once in their lifetimes, representing 14.2% of the population ages 12 and older. Approximately 5.7 million (2.4%) has used cocaine in the past year and 2.0 million (0.8%) had used cocaine within the past month. Among students surveyed as part of the 2004 Monitoring the Future study, 3.4% of eighth graders, 5.4% of tenth graders, and 8.1% of twelfth graders reported using cocaine at least once during their lifetimes. In 2003, these percentages were 3.6%, 5.1%, and 7.7%, respectively. |
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Other problems Because cocaine has a tendency to decrease appetite, many chronic users can become malnourished. Different means of taking cocaine can produce different adverse effects. Regularly snorting cocaine, for example, can lead to loss of sense of smell, nosebleeds, problems with swallowing, hoarseness, and a chronically runny nose. Ingesting cocaine can cause severe bowel gangrene due to reduced blood flow. People who inject cocaine can experience severe allergic reactions and, as with any injecting drug user, are at increased risk for contracting HIV and other blood-borne diseases. Added Danger: When people mix cocaine and alcohol consumption, they are compounding the danger each drug poses and unknowingly forming a complex chemical experiment within their bodies. Researchers have found that the human liver combines cocaine and alcohol and manufactures a third substance, cocaethylene, that intensifies cocaine's euphoric effects, while potentially increasing the risk of sudden death. Source: National Institute on Drug Abuse
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Signs & Symptoms · Dilated pupils · Hyperactivity · Euphoria · Irritability · Anxiety · Excessive talking · Depression or excessive sleeping · Long periods without eating · Long peroids without sleeping · Weight loss · Dry mouth and nose · Paranoia · Disturbance of heart rhythm · Chest pain · Heart failure · Respiratory failure · Strokes · Seizures |
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South American Indians have used cocaine as it occurs in the leaves of Erythroxylon coca for at least 5000 years. Coca-chewing promotes clarity of mind and a positive mood. Traditionally, the leaves have been chewed for social, mystical, medicinal and religious purposes. Coca has even been used to provide a measure of time and distance. Native travelers sometimes described a journey in terms of the number of mouthfuls of coca typically chewed in making the trip. This was a "cocada" - the time or distance and man could walk before a coca pellet was exhausted. Cocaine is the most potent stimulant of natural origin. This substance can be snorted, smoked, or injected. When snorted, cocaine powder is inhaled through the nose where it is absorbed into the bloodstream through the nasal tissues. When injected, the user uses a needle to release the drug directly into the bloodstream. Smoking involves inhaling cocaine vapor or smoke into the lungs where absorption into the bloodstream is as rapid as by injection. Each of these methods of administration pose great risks to the user. |
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