Drugs: questions of terminology

Claiming that drugs kill is as foolish as saying

that water drowns or drugs illuminate

One of the main problems in the drugs issues is the inadequate and arbitrary use of terminology, which shows the widespread ignorance that exists in this field.

In contemporary culture the word “hallucinogen” is used referring to all

psychoactive plants. In fact, most of the compounds classified as illegal are not hallucinogens.

Another term frequently used is “narcotic”. Paradoxically this expression

applies to many substances whose effect is precisely the opposite, such as cocaine, which as we know is a central nervous system stimulant. Derived words as “narco” referred to smugglers or marketing of cocaine, are equally inadequate.

Another commonly used term, of rather vague meaning, is “stupefacients” (substances that cause stupor).

The word “stupor” has two main meanings: a) astonishment b) numbness, insensitivity. From that point of view we can say that there are many drugs that produce “stupor” in either way, most of which can be legally used.

The very term “drug” is also quite general and inadequate to describe illegal compounds. Botanical drug pharmacology called “drug” simply the part of the plant used. In a generic sense drug is a substance having biological effects on the body whose characteristics and intensity vary with the dose. In the first case it could also be called “medicine” and in the second case “poison”. In fact, substances are not medicines or poison, only the dose are.

As for the quality of “addictive” attributed to certain banned substances, it

is totally inappropriate. Many of the illegal “drugs” are not addictive, whereas there are a number of legal products that produce strong addictions.

In short, the vocabulary of prohibition is consistently vague and contradictory.

The only reasons that determine the designation of a substance as an illicit drugare historical and cultural in nature and relate to irrational dogmatic qualifications promoted without any scientific basis.

In fact, to refer to this issue objectively, it is required to consider the relativity of the uses and effects of various psychoactive substances. Only in this way the required conceptual precision will be achieved in a reasonable manner.