Brain and Drugs

 Brain and Drugs

            The brain is the most complex organ in our body and has ability to control every process that regulates our body and mind. The brain does this by sending and receiving both chemical and electrical signals and transforming those signals into responses. The brain is divided into two halves, a left and a right cortex. The left cortex is responsible for controlling language and speech, and the right side deals with visual information. The brain is further split into four lobes: the frontal lobe, parietal lobe, temporal lobe, and occipital lobe. Each controls a range of different functions throughout the body. 

            The signals that the brain receives from throughout the body start at a single synapse. This synapse will produce an electrical signal to release neurotransmitters, which are chemical messengers that diffuse to more neurons and bind to their specialized receptor proteins (Kirichik, 2018). These specialized receptor proteins typically are on the ends of dendrites and are responsible for receiving and processing the electrical messages. Once the signal has arrived at the dendrite, it will be sent through the axon to more neurons or to the target body tissue. These neurotransmitters cause changes to take place throughout the neurons, as the body responds to the signals. These neurons can connect to one or several neurons at once, leading to a calculated response. After the body has responded accordingly, the neurotransmitter will then be broken down by enzymes or reabsorbed for later use. 

            The use of drugs and other substances can inhibit brain signaling or cause abnormal messaging to occur. Each drug has different effects on the brain and its chemical signaling, however the process of each is generally the same. The effect of drugs starts at synaptic transmission, and mimic or activate normal neurotransmitters. This interferes with the way the neurons not only send but receive messages. Even though drugs can activate natural neurotransmitters, they don’t occur the same as natural signaling, leading to abnormal messages to be sent to the brain. This can cause drugs to rewire the brains normal functions, and permanently damage and change our brains functions. 

            Some areas of the brain that are affected by drug use include basal ganglia, the extended amygdala, and prefrontal cortex. The basal ganglia are responsible for motivation, the extended amygdala controls anxiety and irritability, and the prefrontal cortex controls our thinking abilities (NIDA, 2022). Addiction and dependence escalate these effects and can decrease your body’s natural pleasure centers. Your brain will stop releasing its normal production of endorphins and dopamine, causing your brain to feel dependent on the drugs for feelings of pleasure. 

            While the root of this problem seems to be through the use of illegal and illicit drugs, that isn’t the case. The pharmaceuticals used and prescribed commonly in Western Medicine can lead to the same effects, and the abuse of these drugs is on the rise. Prescription drugs are becoming more readily available, and with that the number of cases involving drug abuse and misuse are increasing. Because of this, it would be beneficial for modern medicine to implement some of the ideas and practices of ayurvedic medicine. Having a more holistic and natural approach to medicine would help to shut down the increase in prescription drug use, and abuse. 

 

References

Kirichik, Roman. “Introduction to Brain Signaling.” Diversity in Neuroscience, 2018, https://neuroscience.mssm.edu/nestler/nidappg/introduction_to_brain_signaling.html. 

NIDA. "Drugs and the Brain." National Institute on Drug Abuse, 22 Mar. 2022, https://nida.nih.gov/publications/drugs-brains-behavior-science-addiction/drugs-brain Accessed 29 Jul. 2022.