All About Cocaine
Cocaine is extracted from the leaves of the coca plant, indigenous to the Andean highlands of South America. Nearly 75% of the Andean coca is grown in Colombia. The second and third ranked producers of cocaine are Peru and Bolivia South America. The Mexican border is the primary point of entry for cocaine shipments being smuggled into the United States. Sources indicate approximately 65% of the cocaine entering the U.S. crosses over the Southwestern borders. Initially, when cocaine is processed from leaves down into powder, it is done in combination with a form of hydrochloride salt. Street dealers usually dilute it, known as stepping on or cutting, before it gets resold. This, of course, greatly increases the profit margin. Dealers use a variety of ingredients to dilute or cut the cocaine including cornstarch, talcum powder, baby laxative, sugar or procaine. Cocaine is usually sold on the street as a white, crystalline powder. Cocaine has a variety of street names including coke, C, snow, flake, nose candy or blow.
The principal methods of doing cocaine are snorting, smoking, injecting and swallowing it. Crack and other forms of cocaine are considered party drugs. All too often the party turns into a more and more frequent event and the person gradually feels like they need to do it to feel good again. Using cocaine in any form can trigger sexual stimulation. Cocaine is considered the most potent stimulant of natural origin. Cocaine is a powerfully addictive substance which directly impacts the brain. Today, cocaine is classified as a Schedule II drug, meaning it has a very high potential for abuse and may lead to severe psychological, physical dependence or addiction. Using cocaine makes a person feel euphoric, confident, bold and full of energy.
Using Cocaine
The crystalline, powdery type is used mainly for snorting up the nose. When snorted, cocaine powder is inhaled far up the nasal passages where it is readily absorbed into the bloodstream through the nasal membranes. Various items are used to snort cocaine including plastic straws, tubes and tightly rolled dollar bills. There is usually an extensive ritual of chopping, or grinding, the cocaine before snorting it. This is usually done with a razor blade. A screened grinder designed specifically for this purpose is also used. This minimizes the burning effects of the hydrochloric acid on sensitive nasal membranes. Crack, in small rock form is used for smoking. The smoking of crack is usually done in small glass or metal pipes. Crack is also referred to as freebase because it is cocaine which has not been neutralized by an acid which is a base substance. Smoking is also known as freebasing. Smoking of crack cocaine is done by inhaling cocaine smoke into the lungs, holding there, where it is readily absorbed into the bloodstream. Smoking crack cocaine affects the brain as rapidly as by injecting it. The powdered, hydrochloride form of cocaine can be taken intravenously by first dissolving it in water. Once in liquid form, it is then injected into the bloodstream using a hypodermic needle. Injecting heightens the intensity of its effects. It is also referred to as mainlining.
Once cocaine reaches the brain, dopamine is released by a neuron into the synapse, where it can bind with dopamine receptors on neighboring neurons. Normally, dopamine is then recycled back into the transmitting neuron by a specialized protein called the dopamine transporter. If cocaine is present, it attaches to the dopamine transporter and blocks the normal recycling process, resulting in a buildup of dopamine in the synapse, which contributes to the pleasurable effects of cocaine.
A great amount of research has been devoted to understanding the way cocaine produces its pleasurable effects, and the reasons it is so addictive. One mechanism is through its effects on structures deep in the brain. Scientists have discovered regions within the brain that are stimulated by rewards. One neural system that appears to be most affected by cocaine originates in a region located deep within the brain called the ventral tegmental area (VTA). Nerve cells originating in the VTA extend to the region of the brain known as the nucleus acumens, one of the brain’s key areas involved in reward. In studies using animals, for example, all types of rewarding stimuli, such as food, water, sex, and many drugs of abuse, cause increased activity in the nucleus acumens. Researchers have discovered when a rewarding event is occurs, it is accompanied by a large increase in the amounts of dopamine released in the nucleus acumens by neurons originating in the VTA. In the normal communication process, dopamine is released by a neuron into the synapse (the small gap between two neurons), where it binds with specialized proteins, called dopamine receptors, on the neighboring neuron, thereby sending a signal to that neuron. Drugs of abuse, such as cocaine, are able to interfere with this normal communication process. For example, scientists have discovered that cocaine blocks the removal of dopamine from the synapse, resulting in an accumulation of dopamine. This buildup of dopamine causes continuous stimulation of receiving neurons, which is associated with the euphoria commonly reported by cocaine abusers.
History of Cocaine