Tobacco, Smoking, Drugs Effects | Additional Study Material for NEET PDF Download

ADOLESCENCE AND THEIR PROBLEMS : 

The transition period between 8–18 years for girls, and 7–19 years for boys is called the adolescence. It is poised between– childhood and adulthood which is characterised by rapid growth, and physical and mental development. This period is marked by attainment of sexual maturity (puberty) and increased production of hormones, including sex hormones. This results in frequent shifts of moods and emotional turbulence. The most common problems of all adolescents of both sexes are :

(i) Acne 

(ii) Hypochondria : Most of them are concerned about their health. The eating disorders are abnormal patterns of handling food for fear of obesity and disfigurement of body. These disorders predominantly affect women. They resort to voluntary food restrictions or dieting and try to loose body weight. This disorder is known as anorexia nervosa which may start other types of body complications due to heavy loss of weight.

(iii) Neurasthenia : It is characterised by the inability to concentrate or enjoy things, and may lead to irritability, fatigue, insomnia, depression and headache.

(iv) Post-Traumatic stress disorder: It occurs due to rape, robbery or premarital sexual intercourse which results in unwanted pregnancies. Pregnant girls often visit illegal abortion clinics to hide their action and put their life in a great risk.

(v) Addiction : Addiction to alcohol, drugs, tobacco smoking and chewing is also common. Advertisements, curiosity, peer–pressure, frustration and depression, feeling of independence, etc, may be some of the reasons for such addictions.

(vi) Phobias : These are intense fear of things or creatures like snakes, or situations like vast open places, closed small chamber, crowded places etc.
Adolescence is a period (12 to 20 years) of rapid physical and psychological changes and they should seek all sorts of help from their parents. The parents specially mothers should take complete care of their sons and daughters. The approach of parents towards their growing children should be more friendly and they should be able to discuss most of the issues which come in the life of every young individual.

(vii) Loneliness and Gregariousness

Combinations of drugs : Some addicts use mixtures of drugs to have immediate ‘kick’ or ‘charge’. Simultaneous use of drug (hemp derivatives, barbiturates, aspirin or antihistamines) and alcohol may produce dangerous effects, including death.
When barbiturates and alcohol are taken together, each doubles the effect of the other. A mixture of cocaine and heroin, called speed ball, gives spontaneous kick of cocaine and prolonged pleasure of heroin.

Interaction of Alcohol and other Substances of Abuse with Some Common Drugs

SMOKING

(1) Smoking of tobacco dried and cured leaves of plant Nicotiana tobacum and N. rustica in the form of cigar, cigarettes bidies etc. is very toxic to body.

(2) Smoke of tobacco contain about 300 compounds.

The main compounds are "Nicotine", CO, HCN, Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, certain other stimulating products.

Nicotine in the blood stimulates the nervous system, relax the muscles, release adrenalin hormone and increase the rate of heart beats.

In pregnant ladies growth of foetus decreases and loss of weight may takes place.

DISEASES AND DISORDERS OF SMOKING

(1) Lung cancer

(2) Bronchitis - Inflamation in respiratory tract and alveoli.

(3) Emphysema - Deposition of mucous in the alveoli causes decrease in oxygen absorption considerably and thus tension in the alveoli causes the coughing and break in the respiratory surface there by reducing exchange of gases.

(4) Heart disease - Lumen of blood vessels become narrow which increases the blood pressure(Hypertension)

(5) Intestinal ulcer and other irregularities of Gut

ALCOHOL AND ALCOHOLISM

(1) Ethyl alcohol is consumed as fermented beverages with low content of  alcohol(beer, wine) and as distilled beverages with a relatively high alcohol percentage (Brandy, Rum, Whisky, Gin).

(2) This alcohol is rapidly absorbed from the wall of stomach and enters the blood stream within minutes of ingestion.

In the liver alcohol is converted into a more toxic substance acetaldehyde.

EFFECTS OF ALCOHOL DRINKING -

(1) Lowering of blood sugar level (Hypoglycemia)

(2) Alcohol drinking affects the cerebellum part of brain so control and coordination of the body affected. 

3) Effects on liver - The liver is the organ most affected by alcohol.

Excess alcohol in the blood causes increase in the synthesis of fat which is deposited in the liver cell and bile ducts. This results in the "Fatty liver syndrome"

The further stages of this are "Liver cirrhosis" and "Billiary cirrhosis diseases". Liver become fibrous.

(4) Amnesia - Loss of memory

(5) Gastritis - It causes the inflammation in the wall of stomach. In chronic cases the gastric ulcers usually develop.

(6) Resistance of the body - Body resistance against disease is reduced.

(7) Alcohol psychosis

BLOOD BANK

• Due to certain factors when blood flows out of the body of any person, then blood is required for performing the vital activities.
• It is essential to provide the blood to this person. This phenomenon is known as blood transfusion.
• For different persons the blood of matching blood group is required for this purpose the storage of blood is essential.
• The storage of blood of different blood groups in protected places are known as "Blood -bank"

(i) Blood is mixed with adenine-supplemented citrate-phosphate dextose and it is stored at 4°C (39°F) (1 unit=350 ml)

(ii) Citrate and oxalate binds with free Ca+ ion present in blood and prevent the coagulation of blood.

(iii) In this method stored blood can be stored up to 1 month.

DEVICES

There are three types of devices :-

(i) Implants

(ii) External Prosthesis.

(iii) Disposables

(i) Implants:-Implants are devices fitted in various body parts to overcome disorders, e.g., heart valves, joints, vascular grafts, cosmetic surgery. The material used in implants is nontoxic and bio-compatible. Two common types of implants are artificial heart valves and vascular grafts.

1. Artificial Heart Valves 

Heart valves (semilunar, bicuspid, tricuspid)work round the clock, They may become damaged due to wear and tear, rheumatic fever and other diseases. Such valves require replacement with artificial ones as defective heart valves can lead to heart failure. Artificial valves are of two types :

(i) Mechanical or Metallic Valves : They are made of special bio-compatible plastics, metal alloys or ceramics, Mechanical or Metallic valves develop tendency of blood coagulation. Hence, blood anticoagulants are required.

(ii) Tissue valves : They are obtained directly from pigs, cadavers or made from pericardium of animals.
The valves have the tendency to calcify with time, especially in young.

2. Vascular Grafts or Artificial Arteries

Parts of blood vessels, especially arteries may become defective due to blockage, atherosclerosis, disease or aneurysm (dilation like a balloon with changes of rupturing and consequent death) requiring replacement.
Artificial arteries or vascular grafts are pliable tubes generally made of fibrous plastic of dacron (terylene) or teflon (poly tetra fluoro ethylene) - Saphenous  vein or internal mammary artery.

Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting (CABG) :

It is a way of increasing the blood supply to the heart. In this surgical procedure, a blood vessel from another part of the body is used to bypass the blocked region of a coronary artery. The two vessels used most often are the saphenous vein from the leg, and the internal mammary artery from the chest.

P.T.C.A. (Percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty) :

It is a technique for unblocking coronary arteries that have atherosclerotic plaque. A balloon catheter is inserted into an artery of the arm or thigh and gently guided through the arterial system under X-ray observation artery. Then, While dye is being released, angiograms are taken to localize the plaques. Next, the catheter is advanced to the point of obstruction and a balloon-like device is inflated with air to squash the plaques against the blood vessel wall, there by clearing the channel for the blood even in cases where it had previously been partially blocked.

(ii) Prosthetic Cardiac Pacemaker:-

Cardiac pacemaker replaces the natural electrical stimulation of heart by a small electronic circuitry inserted within the body Subcutaneously Lithium composite battery provides power for about 10 years. It transmits repetitive electrical impulses to the heart in such a manner that the heart rate is maintained at a suitable level. If the heart operates normally, the mechanical pacemaker is inhibited. In the patients having the symptoms of ventricular escape (strokes-Adams syndrome), in which the atrial impulse suddenly fails to be transmitted to the ventricle, which may last for few seconds to few hours even, the artificial pacemaker is connected to the right ventricle for controlling its rhythm. The artificial pacemaker consists of a pulse- generator containing cell (Lithum composite battery) to produce electrical impulse, the lead in the form of a wire, which transmits the impulse and an electrode, which is connected to the portion of the heart where impulse is to be transmitted.

External Prosthesis

It is a device which can be attached to body for overcoming a person who has undergon amputation e.g., artificial hand/arm, foot, leg, denture (artificial teeth), etc. P.K. Sethi of Jaipur has developed a highly sophisticated light weight solid rubber wood aluminium foot which can be rotated and bent just like a natural foot. It is popularly known as jaipur foot. Artificial arms are equally successful. A myoelectric arm has also been developed which can move prosthetic wrist and fingers to hold objects.

(iii) Disposable devices:-

Oxygenators or Heart lung machine (Bubble oxygenators-most common)

Heart lung bypass is resorted to during open heart or lung surgery. Function of heart is performed by roller pump while that of lung is taken over by oxygenator. Oxygenator is a disposable device or artificial lung for oxygenation for blood.

Blood Dialyser/Haemodialyser or Artificial Kidney : The blood urea level rises abnormally (uremia) in patients suffering from renal failures. An artificial kidney is used for removing excess urea from the blood of the patient by a process called hemodialysis. Blood is taken out form an artery of the patient, cooled to 00C, mixed with an anticoagulant, such as heparin, and then pumped into the apparatus called the artificial kidney. In this apparatus, blood flows through channels or tubes bounded by cellophane membrane. The membrane is impermeable to macromolecules, such as plasma proteins, but permeable to small solutes, such as urea, uric acid, creatinine and mineral ions. The membrane separated the blood flowing inside the channels or tubes from a dialysing fluid flowing outside the membrane.

The dialysing fluid contains some small solutes and mineral ions, but does not contain nitrogenous waste products, such as urea, uric acid and creatinine. So, these wastes diffuse from the blood to the dialysing fluid across the cellophane membrane, following the concentration gradient. Thus, the blood is considerable cleared of nitrogenous waste products without losing plasma proteins. Such a process of separating small solutes from macro-molecular colloids with the help of a selectively permeable membrane is called dialysis. The blood coming out of the artificial kidney is warmed to body temperature, mixed with an antiheparin to restore its normal coagulability, and returend to a vein of the patient. Hemodialysis saves and prolongs the life of many uremic patients.

If the kidney failure cannot be  treated, by drug of dialysis, the patients are advised for kidney transplantation.

Defibrillator – Fibrillation is abnormal and asynchronous contraction of the heart muscles so that the effectiveness of heart pumping is reduced or completely lost. Atrial fibrillation may occur in myocardial infarction, and in rheumatic heart disease. Astrong electrical current passed across the chest for the short period of time can stop ventricular fibrillation; this is called defibrillation.

It is achieved by a defibrillator that gives the electric shock through large–paddle shared electrodes pressed against the skin of the chest. Now battery operated implantable devices are available for patients suffering from arrhythmic disorder.

Endoscopy (Endo = Within, Scope = View) 

The endo-scope consist of long flexible tube attached to a handset. The tube is inserted through an opening into the body.

This tube has many channels.  

(1) One channel is for electric cable. The electric signal from the camera (tip of tube) is sent up the tube along this electric cable and feed into a video monitor where a magnified image is seen.

(2) One channel for transmit light to the tip contain bundles of optical fibres inside the endoscope. 

(3) One channel in the endoscope carries air and water making it possible to wash and dry the surgical site.

(4) One channel is for miniature surgical instruments such as forceps at the tip that are controlled by a cable running through a parallel channel. Can also be taken to the site where surgery is needed. A wide variety of instrument can be fitted to the endoscope ; toothed biopsy forceps allow samples of tissue to be removed for analysis : Metal snares carry high frequency electric current that can coagulate blood vessels.
Types of Endoscopes : (Named after the part of the body they are designed to view)

(1) Gastroscope : This is used to examine the stomach for gastric ulcer. 

(2) Laproscope : (Lapro = abdomen) This is used to examine the cyst or infections of the uterus, fallopian tube and ovaries.