Drugs
Drugs act as chemicals that tap into the brain's _ system
Communication
The National Toxicology Program lists alcohol as a known human carcinogen, with strong scientific evidence linking it to _ of the mouth, throat, esophagus, liver, and breast.
cancers
Tobacco is responsible for more than _ deaths per year in the U.S. alone, which is nearly one in five deaths.
480,000
Addiction is not simply a "_" but a chronic, relapsing brain disease that causes a person to seek and use substances despite harmful consequences.
Lack of will
Alcohol causes blood vessels on the skin's surface to dilate, making a person feel warmer, even though it actually causes the body to lose heat, increasing the risk of _ .
hypothermia
Tobacco smoke contains over 7,000 chemicals, including toxic substances like nicotine, arsenic, tar, and _.
carbon monoxide
_ pain relievers, stimulants, and depressants are frequently misused and can cause addiction, severe health issues, or fatal overdose.
Opioid
The _ prioritizes metabolizing alcohol over its other functions, which can cause severe imbalances in blood sugar and lead to liver disease.
liver
Smoking causes cancer, heart disease, stroke, lung diseases (like emphysema and chronic bronchitis), and type _ diabetes.
2
Millions of fake pills, designed to look like legitimate prescription drugs (like Xanax® or Adderall®), are produced to contain illicit _ , a synthetic opioid 50-100 times stronger than heroin.
fentanyl
As a psychoactive substance, alcohol can cause _ , with an estimated 400 million people worldwide (7% of the global population over 15) suffering from alcohol use disorders.
dependence
_ is the drug in tobacco that causes addiction, making it difficult for users to quit even when they want to.
Nicotine
The _ a person begins using drugs, the higher their risk of developing a substance use disorder.
earlier
Approximately 25% of alcohol is absorbed into the bloodstream through the stomach within _ minutes of consumption, with the remaining 75% absorbed by the small intestine.
5-10
Exposure to secondhand smoke causes over _ deaths among non-smoking adults and hundreds of deaths in infants each year.
40,000