Substance abuse can simply be defined as a pattern of harmful use of any substance for mood-altering purposes. "Substances" can include alcohol and other drugs (illegal or not) as well as some substances that are not drugs at all.
"Abuse" can result because you are using a substance in a way that is not intended or recommended, or because you are using more than prescribed.
To be clear, someone can use substances and not be addicted or even have a substance use disorder, as defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual 5 (DSM 5).
What Is Harmful Use?
Health officials consider substance use as crossing the line into substance abuse if that repeated use causes significant impairment, such as:
Health issues Disabilities Failure to meet responsibilities Impaired control Risky use Social issues
In other words, if you drink enough to get hangovers; use enough drugs that you miss work or school; smoke enough marijuana that you have lost friends; or drink or use more than you intended to use, your substance use is probably at the abuse level.
However, the broad range of substance abuse in today's society is not that simple.
The Dangers of Illegal Drugs
Generally, when most people talk about substance abuse, they are referring to the use of illegal drugs. Most professionals in the field of drug abuse prevention argue that any is .
Illegal drugs do more than alter your mood. They can cloud your judgment, distort your perceptions, and alter your reaction times, all of which can put you in danger of accident and injury. These drugs got to be illegal in the first place because they are or can cause . Any use of illegal substances is considered dangerous and, therefore, abusive.
Recreational Use: Is it Abuse?
Others argue that casual, recreational use of some drugs is not harmful and is merely use, not abuse. The most vocal of the proponents of recreational drug use are those who smoke marijuana. They argue that marijuana is not addictive and has many beneficial qualities, unlike the "harder" drugs.
But recent research has shown that even marijuana may have more than first believed. Each year, new scientific studies find more ways that long-term marijuana use is harmful to your health.
In addition, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) reports that marijuana users can become psychologically dependent, and therefore addicted. NIDA estimates that one in every seven users of marijuana becomes dependent.
In the United States, the most commonly abused illegal drugs, in order, are:
Other Abused Substances: Some Are Not Drugs at All
Alcohol, prescription, and over-the-counter medications, and solvents, and even coffee and cigarettes can all be used to harmful excess. In fact, many children have their first encounter with substance abuse by using inhalants, simply because they are found in many common household products and, therefore, readily available.
In today's culture, we now have "" and synthetic drugs, such as (bath salts) and , which may not yet be illegal, but can certainly be abused and can possibly be more dangerous.
There are also substances that can be abused that have no mood-altering or intoxication properties, such as . The use of anabolic steroids to enhance performance or develop muscles and strength is abusive because of the of their use, which can range from merely annoying to life-threatening in some cases. If it can cause you harm, even in the long term, it is substance abuse.
