Cocaine in the black community essays

Cocaine in the black community essays Cocaine in its numerous forms is created from the coca plant which is from the high mountain ranges of South America. The coca leaves were used by natives of this region and acted upon the user as a stimulant. The stimulating effects of the drug increase breathing which increases oxygen intake. This allowed native laborers of the region to perform their duties in the thin air at high altitudes. In time science figured out how to maximize the strength and effect of the drug contained in the coca leaves. Through chemically synthesizing the coca leaves the white crystal powder we have come to know as cocaine was created. As time passed newer methods to magnify the euphoric effects of the drug were invented which has led us to the most potent and addictive form of the drug, crack (Karch 23). Cocaine is a chemical: a crystalline, odorless, colorless alkaloid, solid at room temperature. There are basically two chemical forms of cocaine: the hydrochloride salt and the "freebase." The hydrochloride salt, or powdered form of cocaine, dissolves in water and, when abused, can be taken intravenously (by vein) or intranasal (in the nose). Freebase refers to a compound that has not been neutralized by an acid to make the hydrochloride salt. The freebase form of cocaine is smokable. Cocaine is easily passed from the blood into the brain. It fits onto specific nerve cells in the brain in a way that amplifies the signals they transmit. Those nerve cells regulate experiences of delight and pleasure, and the action of thee cells, when first exposed to cocaine, your brain creates and releases chemicals to intensify the feeling of well-being. The brain then adapts to external perturbations, as well as the presences of the cocaine crystals present in your body. More or less after lon g periods of use the drug will guarantee death (Karch 24). In the United States cocaine was first synthesized in 1855, but it was not until 1880 that cocaine was sought...