WHAT EXACTLY IS COCAINE/CRACK?

According to the Web site cocaine.org, "Cocaine is an alkaloid found
in leaves of the South American shrub Erythroxylon coca. It is a
powerfully reinforcing psychostimulant. The drug induces a sense of
exhilaration in the user primarily by blocking the re-uptake of the
neurotransmitter dopamine in the midbrain.

"In pre-Columbian times, the coca leaf was officially reserved for
Inca royalty. The natives used coca for mystical, religious, social,
nutritional and medicinal purposes. Coqueros exploited its stimulant
properties to ward off fatigue and hunger, enhance endurance, and to
promote a benign sense of well-being. Coca was initially banned by
the Spanish. In 1551 the Bishop of Cuzco outlawed coca use on pain of
death because it was 'an evil agent of the devil.'

"Returning Spanish conquistadores introduced coca to Europe. Even
Shakespeare may have smoked it - and inhaled. The coca plant is
perishable and travels poorly.

"Yet coca was touted as "an elixir of life." In 1814, an editorial in
Gentleman's Magazine urged researchers to begin experimentation so
that coca could be used as "a substitute for food so that people
could live a month, now and then, without eating."

The active ingredient of the coca plant was first isolated in 1855 by
German chemist Friedrich Gaedcke and he named it Erythroxyline.

It became known as cocaine when Albert Niemann described an improved
purification process for his Ph.D.

"Sigmund Freud, an early enthusiast, described cocaine as a magical
drug," notes cocaine.org.

"Freud wrote a song of praise in its honour; and he practised
extensive self-experimentation. Robert Louis Stephenson wrote The
Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde during a six-day cocaine-binge."

However, times have changed dramatically since Coca-Cola removed
cocaine from its product.

The common form of the drug comes when coca leaves are soaked and
mashed into a coca-paste.

"After the organic solvent used has evaporated, the coca-paste is 60
to 80% pure. It is usually exported in the form of the salt, cocaine
hydrochloride. This is the powdered cocaine most common, until
recently, in the West. Drug testing for cocaine aims to detect the
presence of its major metabolite, the inactive benzoylecgonine,"
Cocaine.org explained.

Like any drug that's been around a while, cocaine's potency has increased.

"Sensation-hungry thrill-seekers have long sought the ultimate high
from the ultimate rush. They haven't been satisfied with the enhanced
mood, sexual interest, self-confidence, conversational prowess and
intensified consciousness to be derived from just snorting cocaine.

"Normally, only the intravenous route of administration could be
expected to deliver the more potent and rapid hit they have been
seeking. Yet there are very strong cultural prejudices against
injecting recreational drugs. So a smokeable form was developed,"
Cocaine.org noted.

"Since the hydrochloride salt decomposes at the temperature required
to vaporize it, cocaine is instead converted to the liberated base
form. Initially, 'free-base' cocaine was typically produced using
volatile solvents, usually ether.

"Unfortunately, this technique is physically dangerous. The solvent
tends to ignite. Hence a more convenient method of producing
smokeable free-base became popular. Its product is crack."

It is called crack because it makes a cracking sound when heated.

Wikipedia notes chronic users of cocaine can expect to experience
depression and "a loss of vesicular monoamine transporters,
neurofilament proteins, and other morphological changes appear to
indicate a long-term damage of dopamine neurons. All these effects
contribute to the rise in an abuser's tolerance thus requiring a
larger dosage to achieve the same effect.

"The lack of normal amounts of serotonin and dopamine in the brain is
the cause of the dysphoria and depression felt after the initial
high. The diagnostic criteria for cocaine withdrawal is characterized
by a dysphoric mood, fatigue, unpleasant dreams, insomnia or
hypersomnia, E.D., increased appetite, psychomotor retardation or
agitation, and anxiety.

"Cocaine abuse also has multiple physical health consequences. It is
associated with a lifetime risk of heart attack that is seven times
that of non-users. During the hour after cocaine is used, heart
attack risk rises 24-fold.

"Side effects from chronic smoking of cocaine include chest pain,
lung trauma, shortness of breath, sore throat, hoarse voice, dyspnea,
and an aching, flu-like syndrome. A common misconception is that the
smoking of cocaine chemically breaks down tooth enamel and causes
tooth decay. However, cocaine does often cause involuntary tooth
grinding, known as bruxism, which can deteriorate tooth enamel and
lead to gingivitis.

"Chronic intranasal usage can degrade the cartilage separating the
nostrils (the septum nasi), leading eventually to its complete
disappearance. Due to the absorption of the cocaine from cocaine
hydrochloride, the remaining hydrochloride forms a dilute hydrochloric acid.

"Cocaine may also greatly increase this risk of developing rare
auto-immune or connective tissue diseases such as lupus,
Goodpasture's disease, vasculitis, glomerulonephritis,
Stevens-Johnson syndrome and other diseases. It can also cause a wide
array of kidney diseases and renal failure.

"While these conditions are normally found in chronic use they can
also be caused by short-term exposure in susceptible individuals."