What Is the Definition of Drug Abuse in Science?

Question by xueli_jeremy: what is the definition of drug abuse in science?
the use of drugs in ways that harm the body

Best answer:

Answer by paramour
Habitual use of drugs not needed for therapeutic purposes (e.g., such as solely to alter one’s mood, affect, or state of consciousness) or to affect a body function unnecessarily (e.g., laxative abuse); nonmedical use of drugs.

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1. What is the difference between drug abuse and drug addiction? – Drug abuse and drug addiction are different conditions. Medically, problems with drug abuse and drug addiction (dependence) are each diagnosed with specific criteria outlined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR). To be diagnosed with a drug abuse problem, a person would exhibit any one of four specific signs during a one-year period. To be diagnosed with a drug addiction or dependence problem, a person would exhibit any three out of seven specific signs during a one-year period. Some experts use other definitions for drug abuse and addiction exist. For example, abuse can be defined as any use of an illegal substance or the inappropriate use of a legal substance to produce pleasure, reduce stress, or escape reality (or all three). Even if the drug use doesn’t cause problems that need medical treatment (at least early on), this definition would include use of drugs for experimentation—which can still be harmful—and use of substances such as nicotine or alcohol by minors. Perhaps the primary distinction between abuse and addiction relates to the compulsion of an addict to get their next fix. The addict’s focus is almost exclusively on getting more of the drug. Addiction causes a person to lose control over his or her drug use—it is no longer a choice.

 

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From Twitter:

RT @PiscesAreUs: RT @PiscesAreUs: #Pisces are vulnerable to drug use, even sleeping pill abuse. – by Definition_Sexy (AshleysChynaDoll™)

From Twitter:

RT @PiscesAreUs: RT @PiscesAreUs: A #Pisces gone wrong falls into a lifestyle of drug and alcohol abuse, cult devotion, religious fanaticism, or mental i … – by Definition_Sexy (AshleysChynaDoll™)