The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

X THE OAKVILLE BEAVER Friday, June 18, 1993 â€"16 : + ;QQOQ!Q' } ‘X 1ook at drug serious and personally devastatâ€" ing, is not increasing dangerâ€" ously. Alcohol and tobacco â€" legally and easilyâ€"obtainable drugs â€" cause more problems than illicit subâ€" stances. While illegal drug use in Canada is extremely worrisome, the sceâ€" nario of escalating use is exaggeratâ€" ed. The popular view of drug taking as aberrant behavior practised only by fringe groups or bad people ignores the fact that over three quarâ€" ters of normal adults regularly use legal, sociallyâ€"sanctioned drugs such as caffeine, alcohol, and nicoâ€" tine (tobacco). The public perception of increasâ€" ing cocaine and other illegal drug use in Canada diverges sharply from actual patterns. Statistics show that only a small minority of Canadians use illegal drugs and an even smaller proportion uses them with any regularity. Most illicit drug users try them only experimentally or occasionally for recreation. Surveys suggest an overall decline in illicit drug use both in Canada and the U.S. during the past few years, despite an increase in drug trafficking, crime, and healthâ€"care emergencies (largely linked to cocaine). An increase in cocaineâ€" related crime doesn‘t necessarily reflect increased use, but may porâ€" tray more law enforcement activiâ€" ties and greater competition for a declining market! In reality, while there are deaths and tragically wastâ€" ed lives from cocaine, overall conâ€" sumption is declining in North America (except in small pockets of hardâ€"core, regular users). The latest surveys by Health and Welfare Canada and Ontario‘s Addiction Research Foundation (ARF) â€" an outstanding and internaâ€" tionallyâ€"renowned research and clinical centre â€" show no increase since 1987 in the use of cocaine, stimulants, marijuana, tranquillizâ€" ers, or sleeping pills, although there are changes in a few subâ€"groups. For instance, amid the general drug decline, the use of tranquillizers and sleeping pills increased among 18 to 29â€"yearâ€"old women. And while use of cannabis (marijuana) has gone down in the last decade, there‘s a slightly increase use by young women, the unemployed, and men aged 30 to 50. Although total alcoâ€" hol consumption is also down, binge drinking (five or more alcoâ€" holic drinks at one sitting) has risen in men over age 50. Clearly, rumors of a Canadian drug epidemic overstate the situaâ€" Ellegal drug use in Canada, while L PCL PLASTICS CORPORATION 2300 Speers Road Oakville, Ontario L6L 2X8 of Canada 235 Lakeshore Rd. E. Suite 104 akville 845â€"7200 THoar L icense To Survive !ol!'l- * t 4 % 64A .)Q}Q’QQ}G(, a° a m o se fares bot 4 t xd tion, creating a hysterical "warâ€"onâ€" drugs" mentality. This approach overlooks the extent to which drug use is a wideâ€"spread social custom and part of our culture. Experts note that responsible, moderate drug use (for instance, of alcohol and cafâ€" feine) is actually linked to an active social life. In Canada, caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine are so popular that they‘re hardly even recognized as drugs, and drug use is such an entrenched part of our modern lifestyle â€" and of most human sociâ€" eties past and present â€"â€" that it is more the rule than the exception. One University of Toronto expert suggests that ‘"instead of labelling drug use as an epidemic, we should more accurately call it endemic." The divergence between fact and fiction in portraying drug use was clearly shown by a recent Ontario Drug Awareness Survey. When asked to identify the drug they thought was most widely use, 37% mentioned cocaine or crack, 15% specified cannabis (marijuana/hashish) while only 11% identified alcohol or tobacco. Many considered cocaine the most danâ€" gerous, addictive, and widelyâ€"used drug. Yet, alcohol and nicotine are far more widely used and nicotine is as, if not more, addictive. Globally, marijuana is the most widelyâ€"used illicit substance. Compared to other nations, Canada is ranked as a "moderate user" of marijuana, heroâ€" in, and hallucinogens, but a heavy user of amphetamines (e.g. "Speed"), barbiturates, and tranquilâ€" lizers. In Canada, surveys show that for adults over age 15 (on a yearly basis): Q 97% use caffeine Q 86% use alcohol Q 26% smoke tobacco Q 9â€"12% use marijuana Q 7â€"10% use tranquillizers (e.g. benzodiazepines or Valium) Q 8â€"9% use sleeping pills (e.g. barbiturates) Q 2â€"3% use stimulants (e.g. _ amphetamines, benzedrine, phenylâ€" propanolamine/PPAÂ¥) Q 1â€"3% use cocaine (although 6% of Ontarians reported "trying cocaine at some time in their lives") Qâ€"0.7% use crack (a preparation of cocaine with baking soda that can be smoked). * The discrepancy between reality and the public perception of drug use arises partly from mistakenly equating street violence with illicit drug use â€" the belief that drug busts, seizures, criminal activities, and hospital admissions reflect actual DRIVING DRUGS DO NOT MIX SAY "NO" TO DRVGS KER CADILLAC PONTIAC BUICK LIMITED 410 SOUTH SERVICE Ee es Tt x OTMH S Oakvilleâ€"Trafalgar Memorial Hospital 327 Reynolds Street Oakville, Ontario, L6J 3L.7 ¢ 6 +8 t + ‘v e l‘ 05 ‘(l K ~.Q~;“ * * uC 0t3 wa B in ts To in +6 S ie oo td Snfi ve ab i m P D i. M B 34 Lb of §e t se M 8 +) .2 D00 d 4s .c 55 d i .c 44. J})si‘*sii";Izih}#i'a'fii‘!nh»é“il‘l\ ? â€" use. But drug arrests and detox rates don‘t necessarily correlate with the extent of drug use. Drug seizures can increase while use remains the same or declines. And the number of people requiring drug treatment doesn‘t reflect present use because of the time lag between the develâ€" opment of a specific drug problem and users seeking or entering treatâ€" ment. False impressions also arise because our radio, TV, and the popâ€" ular press are unduly influenced by U.S. drug problems and the "war on drugs" has news appeal. Yet, illegal substance abuse in Canada is far below U.S. levels, possibly because we have fewer crowded inner city areas, a less concentrated populaâ€" tion, and as one expert comments "because Canadians seem to have more respect for law and order." WHAT IS A DRUG A drug is any substance other than body constituents or those needed for normal body functioning (e.g. food) which, on ingestion, alters brain and body function. Psychoactive or moodâ€"altering subâ€" stances â€" today‘s most popular drugs â€" alter the way people think, feel, and act. Some are legal subâ€" stances such as alcohol, nicotine, caffeine, or those in certain medicaâ€" tions, such as cold remedies (conâ€" taining PPA or phenylâ€" propanolamine) or painkillers (conâ€" taining codeine). Others are illegal substances such as cocaine, LSD, and marijuaâ€" na.:.;" Some drugs are stimulants (amphetamines, cocaine, caffeine) which increase alertness, others are depressants (alcohol, barbiturates) which dampen brain activity, reduce anxiety, and seemingly calm the spirit. Still others are hallucinogens (e.g. LSD and PCP) which produce visual and auditory hallucinations. Certain drugs occur naturally such as psilocybin or "shrooms" (an LDSâ€"like substance from mushâ€" rooms), mescaline (from the peyote cactus), cocaine (from coca leaves) and heroin (from poppies). Others are made from plants (e.g. alcohol, from fruit or grains). Yet other are synthetics â€" manufactured legally or illegally (e.g. amphetamine or "Speed" and methamphetamine or "Ice"). $ $O WHO‘S USING WHAT? Although overall drug use has gone down in recent years, 86% of Canadians over age 15 drink alcoâ€" hol at least once yearly, 10% using enough to qualify as problem drinkers, 5% being classed as heavy drinkers ("alcoholics"). The next E zpara «med HEALTH SERVICES 24 Hours A Day 7 Daysâ€"A Week Home or Hospital 1515 Rebecca St., Suite 211, Oakville 847â€"1025 Wl 1 KOPRIVA TAYLOR COMMUNITY FUNERAL HOME 64 Lakeshore Road West, Oakville LOCALLY OWNED OPERATED BY RUDY KOPRIVA NEILL TAYLOR é\ 4â€"2600 yor t s § qb e d 4 es u'mmOmn C most widelyâ€"used drug is nicotine/tobacco (26%), followed by marijuana, tranquillizers, sleepâ€" ing pills, and assorted stimulants (including crack/cocaine). WHY PEOPLE TAKE DRUGS Used through the centuries, psyâ€" choactive substances help people overcome shyness, smooth commuâ€" nication, and promote merriness (at ceremonies, parties) â€" symbolizing togetherness and conviviality. They are also taken for private pleasure â€" wine with dinner, a cigarette afterâ€" wards, shared marijuana joints. Some "do drugs" for fun, mindâ€" expansion or to belong to the inâ€" group. Others turn to them because they‘re at a low point in their lives, want to escape from a difficult home, or school situation, to rebel, to cope with distress, or to alleviate a psychological disturbance such as depression (to "selfâ€"medicate" away the pain). Some rapidly take to drugs because of sociopathic tenâ€" dencies or simply because they mix with drugâ€"taking companions. According to the biopsychosoâ€" cial model, people may abuse or become dependent on drugs because of a biological or metabolic predisposition, a social reason (maybe peer pressure) and/or psyâ€" chological factors (e.g. depression or anxiety). > USE lS NOT NECESSARILY ABUSE Drug use may involve legal and/or illicit substances and can be "recreational" (occasional) or reguâ€" lar. There‘s no sharp distinction between drug use and abuse, between moderate, responsible use, and excessive or abusive use. People are said to "abuse" a drug if they are not yet fully dependent on it but, nonetheless, experience probâ€" lems from its use (perhaps severe intoxication, work, family, or school problems). Drug abuse is use "severe enough to cause health damage, social disruption, financial, workplace, and family problems." If drugs become the main solution for very difficult situations and the usual way of coping, a serious abuse problem exists. Whether and when drug use is regarded as "abuse" depends largely on whether the substance is legal or illegal and on cultural and personal values. WHAT IS ADDICTION: CAN YOU GIVE UP OR NOT? Despite repeated efforts to define it, addiction remains poorly distinâ€" guished from habit and is loosely used for any compulsion â€" such as being "addicted" to chocolate. Drug addiction goes far beyond the physiâ€" BRUCE KIKRK For hair 1500 Sixth Ling, Upper Sixth Plaza Oakville, Ontario L6H 2P2 (416) 338â€"2099 Carberry Davis Insurance Brokers Limited 845â€"4201 Fax 845â€"1868 189 Lakeshore Rd. East, Oakville, Ont. L6J 5A2 Supporting Dare to Say "NO" To Drugs Programs voitqqf‘ anadians cal effects of a chemical on the body to encompass its behavioral aspects. Since drug use may, or may not, lead to addiction and definiâ€" tions vary, the term "dependence" is now often used instead or interâ€" changeably. The clue to dependence (addiction) lies in whether the habit can be stopped â€" as one ARF expert puts it simply, "Can you give up easily. or not." The greater the dependence, the harder it generally is to quit. Drug dependence includes psychological and/or physical dependence. The psychological aspects of addiction are as, or more critical, than physiâ€" cal dependence and may dominate life to the exclusion of all else. In 1964, the World Health Organization defined drug addiction as ""a state of periodic or chronic intoxication, detrimental to the indiâ€" vidual and to society, produced by the repeated consumption of a drug (natural or synthetic) with high priâ€" ority given to obtaining it." A more recent definition of addiction proposed by the Royal Society of Canada Committee on Tobacco, Nicotine and Addiction, separates the health effects of addicâ€" tion from the addictive process. The essential feature of addiction is behavioral dependence which can be allâ€"engulfing, physical depenâ€" dence generally being an offshoot or consequence of continued drug ng. S%’OTTING SUBSTANCE DEPENDENCY Q The first sign is often a change in behavior â€" secretiveness, unusual moodiness, unexplained absences from home, cutting classes, workâ€" place absenteeism. Q Evasive, less affectionate, hosâ€" tile or distant manner â€" no longer intimate with family, friends, school, or workmates. Q Apathetic â€" withdrawn demeanor. Q New companions â€"joining new groups and adopting language, clothes, and style of new friends/acquaintances. Q Declining or erratic school or work performance. Failure to keep curfew, remember birthdays, mainâ€" tain friendships, do chores, attend to responsibilities. Q Memory loss â€" concentration or learning lapses. Q Change in appetite â€" altered eating habits. Q Less or more sleep. Q Complaints of being "hassled" â€" suspicion. Q Angry or defensive reaction â€" especially at mention of drugs. RITTAL LTD. OAKVILLE, ONTARIO International Manufacturer of Hiâ€"Tech Products For Industrial Office Automation. PELIALT Y [ DARE TO SAY NO TO DRUGS! 505 Iroquois Shore Rd. Unit 6, Oakville 842â€"2888 tA t 4