Alcohol, tobacco, digital media - what parents should know

Adolescents can come into contact with many substances and behaviours that pose a risk of addiction. These are the most common.

Alcohol

Alcohol, or more correctly ethanol, is a colourless liquid that is produced when carbohydrate-containing foods such as cereals, fruit or potatoes are fermented. It quickly enters the bloodstream via the mouth, throat and digestive tract. How quickly this happens depends on gender, age, weight, genetic conditions, drinking speed and the food in the stomach.

Alcohol is a psychoactive substance, and the initial effects quickly become apparent: warmth, a feeling of well-being, the urge to talk, relaxation, happiness. As the level of alcohol in the blood increases, the effects change - and vary greatly from person to person. For example, the willingness to take risks can increase, critical faculties and judgement can decrease, vision and hearing as well as the sense of balance are impaired.

The mixed consumption of alcohol with other psychoactive substances can intensify or alter the effects of all substances. The toxic effects of alcohol can favour the development of very different diseases in almost all organs, including fatty liver, alcohol dementia and cancer.

Tobacco

Tobacco is obtained from the leaves of plants of the tobacco genus (Nicotiana). Depending on the type of tobacco and how it is processed, experts estimate that there are between 6,000 and 12,000 different substances in a cigarette and its smoke. Some of these are toxic, at least 70 are carcinogenic. The best known is nicotine, which has a psychoactive effect.

Nicotine is considered to be one of the most addictive substances and stimulates the release of dopamine and other neurotransmitters that improve cognition and memory and inhibit appetite.

Smoking can be fatal: The main risks are lung, trachea and larynx cancer, heart attack, stroke and respiratory diseases. In addition to the duration of tobacco consumption, which has the greatest influence on the risk of disease, the type of consumption and the quantity also play a role in the consequences for health. The options for consuming tobacco have increased once again in recent years. In addition to the classic cigarette, cigarillo, cigar and pipe, alternative forms are currently popular: snus (lozenge tobacco), snuff, e-cigarettes, shishas and tobacco heaters. They all contain nicotine and can therefore be addictive. To date, there have been no conclusive long-term studies on the health effects of tobacco heaters and e-cigarettes. Shisha smoking is hardly considered less harmful than cigarette smoking, and there is also a risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.

Cannabis

Cannabis, also known as hemp, is a globally cultivated plant and the most commonly consumed illegal substance in Switzerland. It contains around 100 so-called cannabinoids, the two best known being THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol) and CBD (cannabidiol).

THC is primarily responsible for the psychoactive effect of cannabis, while CBD mainly has a calming effect. If the dried flowering tops of the female hemp plant are consumed, this is referred to as marijuana or weed. If the user ingests the resin of the flowers, it is called hashish. There are also other extracts and concentrates that are mainly used as oils, tinctures or e-liquids.
The effects of cannabis kick in after around ten minutes and last for up to three hours when smoked. The effects only kick in after half an hour to an hour when the cannabis is eaten and can last up to ten hours. How the substance works depends heavily on the person consuming it and their current mood, the type of consumption, the strain, the amount consumed and the consumption situation.

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This article is part of the online dossier on addiction . Read more about the following questions: When do parents need to take notice? How should mums and dads react if their son is gaming around the clock or their daughter comes home drunk? When is too much too much?

Ecstasy (MDMA)

They are produced fully synthetically in laboratories and are therefore referred to as designer drugs: MDMA (short for 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine), also known as ecstasy, and substances such as MMDA, MDA, MDEA and MBDM, which have a chemically similar structure. The party drugs, which are marketed under very different names, are usually taken orally or snorted.

Ecstasy and its derivatives cause an increased release of the neurotransmitter serotonin in the brain and have a euphoric, hallucinogenic and sensuality-enhancing effect that lasts between four and six hours.

The substances can be overdosed and lead to acutely life-threatening conditions. They are often mixed with other substances. Medium-term side effects of consumption can include anxiety, insomnia and depressive moods. In the long term, ecstasy can have a toxic effect on nerve cells and damage the brain.

Speed (amphetamines)

They are mostly produced in illegal laboratories in Europe and Asia and are particularly popular in the party scene and for performance enhancement: amphetamines, better known as speed, and methamphetamines, better known as Thai pills, crystal or ice. The synthetically produced substances are swallowed, snorted or smoked as tablets and powders and quickly become addictive.

Amphetamines release dopamine and noradrenaline and their effects can last up to 12 hours. Methamphetamines have a similar effect, but stronger and longer. Users have the feeling of an increased ability to think and concentrate, they are in a highly euphoric state and feel no hunger, thirst or tiredness.

Both substances can be overdosed and thus lead to acutely life-threatening conditions. Long-term consequences of consumption can include depression, anxiety, psychosis, organ damage and a weakened immune system.

Digital media

The internet has been around for a good 30 years and has significantly changed the way we communicate and obtain information for almost two decades. It is almost constantly available via computer, tablet, mobile phone and smartwatch.

Intensive internet use can - like the use of psychoactive substances - change the reward system in the brain.

Intensive use of the internet can - just like the consumption of psychoactive substances - change the reward system in the brain. This can lead to those affected spending more and more time online and other areas of life suffering as a result. Neurobiological studies show that people with problematic internet use have altered structures in brain regions that are responsible for memory, motivation and cognitive control, among other things. However, the extent to which substance use and addiction to the Internet are actually similar must be investigated in further studies.
Source: Addiction Switzerland

Read more in the «Addiction» dossier:

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