Long Term Effects of Drug Abuse in Children

Long Term Effects of Drug Abuse in Children

Thesis Statement: Drug abuse among children exposes them to several long-term effects, which include psychological, physical, as well as behavioral effects, and these can be treated through the use of therapeutic measures.

1. Introduction
   1. Many children in the United States, as well as all over the world are exposed to drugs at a very tender age.
   2. Over 8.3 million children, which translates into 11 percent of all children in the United States, are either directly or indirectly exposed to several health risks due to drug addiction (Masud & Khan, 2018).
   3. Drug abuse among children exposes them to several long-term effects, which include psychological, physical, as well as behavioral effects, and these can be treated through the use of therapeutic measures.
2. Psychological Effects
   1. Drug abuse among children has been associated with several mental health problems such as anxiety, paranoia, as well as depression (El Sayed, Ali, Ahmed, & Mohy, 2019).
   2. Children that are abuse drugs are twice as likely to struggle with different mental health problems such as anxiety and mood disorder (Moustafa, Parkes, Fitzgerald, Underhill, Garami, Levy-Gigi & Misiak, 2018).

• Physical Effects
  1. The physical health of the children is affected in several ways as a result of drug abuse, and the prominent ones include the lings, heart, liver as well as kidneys (Winters, Botzet, Stinchfield, Gonzales-Castaneda, Finch, Piehler, & Hemze, 2018).
  2. Long-term abusers of drugs are also exposed to mounting tolerance, which increases the risk of overdose or even death (Das, Salam, Arshad, Finkelstein, & Bhutta, 2016).

1. Behavioral Effects
   1. The behaviors of many children are adversely affected due to prolonged periods of exposure to drugs such as neglect of family and friends.
   2. Such children are also unable to fulfill work or academic obligations and are more likely to withdraw from their social, recreational, or occupational engagements (Das et al., 2016).
2. Nonetheless, however, adverse these long-term effects are, there are several measures through which they can be treated.
   1. Several measures and treatment options have been designed to respond to the unique challenges of drug addiction among children, and these include therapy, counseling, and the use of antidepressant medications (Somani, & Meghani, 2016).
   2. The use of these methods is supported by the fact that they are focused on correcting the behaviors of the children other than merely preventing them from taking drugs. In such a way, the problem is solved on a long-term basis (Philip & George, 2018).
   3. However, these usually do not respond to the already manifested health problems.
3. Conclusion
   1. Drug abuse exposes children to several long-term issues such as psychological, physical, as well as behavioral effects.

When children take drugs at a tender age, they are exposed to mental, physical, as well as long-term behavioral impacts that affect their health, and these can be treated and prevented through therapy and counseling services.

Annotated Bibliography

Masud, J. H., Khan, M. M., & Jesmin. (2018). Pattern of drug abuse among street children of Dhaka: Inhalants are the most popular drug. Delta Medical College Journal, 6(1), 29-34. doi:10.3329/dmcj.v6i1.35965
This study was aimed at investigating the attitudes or perceptions of street children towards substance abuse. The researchers used street children because these are usually initiated to drugs at a very tender age to be accepted into street gangs. The results of this study are essential in revealing the magnitude of this problem and hence offer a firm foundation upon which appropriate countermeasures can be designed.

Moustafa, A. A., Parkes, D., Fitzgerald, L., Underhill, D., Garami, J., Levy-Gigi, E., … Misiak, B. (2018). The relationship between childhood trauma, early-life stress, and alcohol and drug use, abuse, and addiction: An integrative review. Current Psychology. doi:10.1007/s12144-018-9973-9

The study investigates the relationship between substance addiction, abuse, and use, early-life stress, and childhood trauma. Through a comprehensive analysis and review of several past studies on substance abuse, the authors are able to come up with a detailed review of different concepts relating to substance abuse and addictions among children. This study will be imperative to this study as it posits all the necessary treatment strategies for drug abuse and addiction based on the several types of early-life stressors that are responsible for drug abuse among children.

Das, J. K., Salam, R. A., Arshad, A., Finkelstein, Y., & Bhutta, Z. A. (2016). Interventions for adolescent substance abuse: An overview of systematic reviews. Journal of Adolescent Health, 59(4), S61-S75. doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2016.06.021

The study, which is founded on the fact that the majority of unhealthy behaviors that represent major public health challenges usually begin during adolescence, is aimed towards evaluating how useful the different measures of preventing drug abuse among adolescents are. The researchers find this critical because drug abuse has a major impact on communities, families, and individuals, and its long-term, cumulative effects contribute to mental, physical as well as social problems. The study will be crucial in this project as it makes a review of the different intervention programs suggesting the best and most appropriate of these all.

Winters, K. C., Botzet, A. M., Stinchfield, R., Gonzales-Castaneda, R., Finch, A. J., Piehler, T. F., … Hemze, A. (2018). Adolescent substance abuse treatment: A review of evidence-based research. Adolescent Substance Abuse, 141-171. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-90611-9_5

The study presents drug abuse in teenagers as one of the major public health problems in the United States. Notably, it is for that reason that the major aim of the study is to suggest the different treatment and prevention approaches for drug abuse among adolescents. This study is important as it does offer not only the long-term effects of drug abuse but also suggests several ways through which this problem can be corrected.

Somani, S., & Meghani, S. (2016). Substance abuse among youth: A harsh reality. Emergency Medicine: Open Access, 6(4), 2. doi:10.4172/2165-7548.1000330

There is an alarming prevalence of drug abuse among children globally. The study posits that this does affect not only the individual abusers but also society and their families. For that matter, this study is aimed at investigating the prevalence of drug abuse among youths. To do this, the researchers, using various databases such as CINAHL, PubMed, and Science direct reviewed in 2013 and 2014. The study finds that the predisposing factors of substance abuse among children include the affordability and accessibility of drugs, poverty, family structures and relations, gender, and age. This study is important because, through offering knowledge concerning the predisposing factors, the right and most appropriate treatment and prevention approaches can be sought.

Abd Elwahab El Sayed, H., Abd El Sattar Ali, R., Mohamed Ahmed, F., & Fathy Mohy, H. (2019). The effect of life skills intervention on social self-efficacy for prevention of drug abuse among young adolescent students at Benha city. American Journal of Nursing Science, 8(5), 263-273. doi:10.11648/j.ajns.20190805.19

The study is founded on the position that the different challenges in life usually way out children and force them into drugs. Therefore, it aims at evaluating the effect of life skills interventions on preventing children from engaging in drug abuse activities. The results show that when children are equipped with life skills, they are less likely to engage in drug abuse. As such, this study will offer a foundation upon which prevention interventions can be developed.

Philip, N. S., & George, S. (2018). Substance Abuse–a true evil among innocent children, have you got it true?. Educere-the BCM Journal of Social Work, 14(1), 23-36. Retrieved from https://bcmcollege.ac.in/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/2-Substance-Abuse-%E2%80%93-a-true-evil-among-innocent-children-have-you-got-it-true.pdf

Substance abuse is a problem that is usually ignored in today’s society. However, it is a silent killer of very many children. Thus, this study is aimed at investigating the prevalence of substance abuse among children and the major reasons why children end up in such self-destructive behaviors. It is upon this ground that the study suggests the different measures that can be used to prevent this problem. This study will be used as a source of understanding of how big the problem of substance abuse is and thereby suggest the most effective measures to counter it.