Past and Current Drug Use Trends in the Workplace

Drugs have been around since the beginning of time. People have always been curious about their surroundings and regulations seem to only increase people’s general curiosity of a drug. As early as the 1500s and 1600s, addictive behavior of drug and alcohol was under no control or regulation. As immigrants began importing drugs to America, regulations against using drugs began to impact society both positively and negatively. The first reports of drug regulation began with the practice of shamanism. A shaman is a religious healer that uses “the accumulation of knowledge about consciousness-altering substances” (Levinthal, 2012, p. 9) to assist individuals with illnesses or problems. Many cultures began to experiment with different uses for drugs. As the drugs made their way into America, morals and beliefs began to change. Acceptance of drug use and regulation has waxed and waned throughout the years. Current trends in drug use and regulation reflect past trends of curiosity, learning, and development for the future of drug use and consumption.

Early Drug Use

Native Americans were the first reported culture to use tobacco for ritual and medicinal purposes; introducing this drug to Europeans in the late 1500s (Cable News Network, 2000). Although tobacco was socially condemned in America in the 1600s, is soon became a “symbol of modernism” (Levinthal, 2012, p. 248) and the tobacco industry began to flourish. Also during this century, many religious Aztec rituals include the use of hallucinogens as a healing agent of both physical and spiritual reasons. Mushrooms found in Mexico and Central America contains the hallucinogen, psilocybin. Morning glory seeds also contain the hallucinogenic chemical LAA, which is similar to LSD. However, LSD is not used in religious rituals. Bufotenine derives from the Bufo toad, once used in ancient Mayan and Aztec ceremonial rituals. The chemical DMT likely combines with the bufotenine, causing hallucinations and distorted images (Levinthal, 2012). Peyote is also a common drug used in Native American religious rituals.

As immigration to America began to increase in the late 1800s, Chinese immigrants entering America brought opium to help them work on the railroad. Although the use of drugs was legal, a person used them determined if it was respectable or immoral. In 1850, a German chemist named Alfred Niemann isolated the active ingredient in the coca plant and called it cocaine. Cocaine became a popular drug choice for stimulation and was used as an antidepressant. Mood rapidly increases and as levels decrease, the individual craves another dose to cure depression.

In 1885, John Pemberton, a pharmacist in Atlanta, Georgia developed the popular soft drink, Coca-Cola that contained both caffeine and cocaine. (Levinthal, 2012). During the late 1800’s opium and cocaine use increased in popularity as more White men and women began to experiment with the drugs. Societal problems began to appear as Sears began advertising the sale of opiates, cocaine, and other drugs in the mail-order catalog.

Societal Beliefs and Government Influence

The perception of drugs began to change as news reports about the Chinese using the drug opium to lure individuals began an association with deviant behavior of the immigrants and their drugs. Mexicans immigrating to America during this time, brought with them marijuana. Tales of mass hysteria, murderous rages, and crazy behavior began to flood the media, increasing the fear of drugs. Recreational use of drugs was seen as deviant, not respectable, and even immoral, but “was no more disreputable than heavy drinking” (Lavinthal, 2012, p. 48). To increase the trade market and minimize addiction, various laws were enacted during this time. Just as the Food and Drug Act of 1906 began to develop, cocaine was removed from the popular drink, Coca-Cola. The labeling of food and drugs began in 1906. The Harrison Narcotics Act in 1914 was passed to “restrict the sale of opiates and cocaine” (Luno, n.d., para. 8). Imports were banned until 1919.

As tobacco use began to change and develop; smoking pipes, cigars, and cigarettes were common among both males and females alike. Smoking became popular in the 1920s as advertisements were endorsed by celebrities aimed toward both men (to reduce stress) and women (for the glamour). Individual states began to ban alcohol and in 1920, the prohibition of alcohol began with the passing of the 18th Amendment to the Constitution, banning the “sale, transportation, import, and export of alcoholic beverages” (Historic Patterson, 2012, para. 3). The prohibition essentially “succeeded in establishing a nationwide alcohol distribution network dominated by sophisticated criminal organizations” (Levinthal, 2012, p. 11).

Drug Influence

During the 1930s and 1940s, researchers found correlations of drug and alcohol use associated with cancer and early deaths. Marijuana was taxed and state laws made possession of marijuana illegal (Levinthal, 2012, p. 50). A research chemist, Albert Hofmann, discovered the hallucinogenic drug, LSD. This drug distorts ones perceptions, often with waves of shapes, forms, and colors. Amphetamine and methamphetamine were widely used to treat “narcolepsy, depression, obesity, alcoholism, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)” (Drug Policy Alliance, 2013, para. 2). Tar and nicotine were found to increase health risks to cancer and early death. As a result, filters were added to the rolled tobacco in an effort to reduce toxins in the 1950s. Nicotine concentrations were increased as filters were added to the cigarette. Cigarette sales began to decline as more health concerns were found.

During the 1960s, “LSD became a symbol for cultural revolt of a generation of youth against the perceived inadequacies of the established, older generation” (Levinthal, 2012, p. 148). Hallucinogenics such as LSD were promoted for generating creativity. Although research on LSD remained controlled in psychotherapy sessions and psychiatric hospitals, reports of U.S. soldiers using marijuana, heroin, alcohol, and other recreational drugs began to surface during this time (Levinthal, 2012). The war on drugs began in the 1970s as television advertising for tobacco was banned, warning labels were required, and further research of drugs continued as recreational drug use was prohibited.

Opium was found to contain morphine, an active ingredient to treat pain. As drug prevention programs scaled back, the use of club drugs began to emerge. Ecstasy, Ketamine, and Methamphetamine are commonly found in bars, dance clubs, and raves. Although the rates of high school students using illicit drugs is on the decline, abuse of prescription medication (licit drugs) are on the rise. Drug use is associated with developmental delays, changes in behavior, and sense perceptions. Drugs will always be habit forming in one context or another. The perception of drug use in the media will continue to influence society’s beliefs of drugs.

Coffee was once seen as toxic as alcohol and was banned from religious Celtics. Today, “drugs are used commonly and acceptably to wake up in the morning (coffee or tea), get through the stresses of the day (cigarettes), and relax in the evening (alcohol)” (Newcomb & Bentler, 1989, para 1). Scare tactics and informational approaches have not been as effective as alternative programs. Continued education about drug use, misuse, and abuse are needed to prevent or stop drug addiction; reaching those most at risk. Laws and regulations preventing drug use may actually contribute to further curiosity and general revolt against older generations.

References

Cable News Network. (2000). A brief history of tobacco. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/US/9705/tobacco/history/

Drug Policy Alliance. (2013). A Brief History of the Drug War. Retrieved from http://www.drugpolicy.org/new-solutions-drug-policy/brief-history-drug-war

Drug Policy Alliance. (2013). Methamphetamine Facts. Retrieved from http://www.drugpolicy.org/drug-facts/methamphetamine-facts

Historic Patterson. (2012). The Prohibition Era. Retrieved from http://www.historicpatterson.org/Exhibits/ExhProhibition.php

Levinthal, C. F. (2012). Drugs, Behavior, and Modern Society (7th ed.). Boston: Pearson.

Luno, N. (2003). Prohibition in America: A Brief History. Retrieved from http://thedea.org/prohibhistory.html

Newcomb, M. D. and Bentler, P. M. (1989). Substance use and abuse among children and teenagers. American Psychologist. American Psychological Association, Inc. 44(2), 242-248