HIV and HCV by sharing needles

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Time has proven that despite so much information available about narcotics and their paralytic effects on individuals, families and the society as a whole, the matter of narcotic addiction has been a difficult challenge to confront. The association of this sort of addiction to deadly infections caused by HIV and HCV by sharing needles is very well-established. "About one-third of AIDS cases in the United States are associated with sharing of injection equipments". (Stancliff S, et al., BMC Public Health Nov 2003) Increased sexual activity among drug users, either in form of prostitution or due to the disinhibiting effect of some drugs, exposes them at even a higher risk of contracting sexually transmitted diseases specially AIDS. Drugs induce a wide array of physical and psychological effects. The excitement caused by cocaine is followed by a period of fatigue, anxiety, depression, and subsequently an acute desire for more cocaine to relieve those feelings. Studies have shown that marijuana interferes with motor control and is a factor in causing motor vehicle accidents. The purity and dosage of illegal drugs are also of concern as uncontrolled drug overdose is a constant risk. Over 10,000 deaths are directly linked to drug use in the United States each year; the drugs most frequently involved are cocaine, heroin, and morphine, many times combined with alcohol or other drugs. To afford the drugs, many addicts eventually get involved in criminal activities, such as burglary and prostitution, and some drugs, particularly alcohol, are known to be associated with violent behavior. (The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, Sep 2005) It is worth to know that over 80% of the increase in the federal prison population from 1985 to 1995 was due to drug convictions. ( US Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, Prisoners in 1996 (Washington DC: US Department of Justice, 1997)The user's preoccupation with the drug, due to its impact on mood and performance, leads to family and marital problems, poor work performance or dismissal. Drug use inevitably disrupts the family life, and creates destructive patterns of codependency. In another term, the spouse or whole family, out of love or fear of consequences such as embarrassment, unintentionally helps the addict to continue using drugs by denial of / or covering up the problem, and even supplying money. The children of pregnant drug users, either due to the effect of drugs or poor self-care, are at much higher risk of low birth-weight than the average. Crossing the placenta, drugs such as crack and heroin, result in addiction of fetus that undergoes through withdrawal soon after birth which can prove lethal. Studies indicate that the pregnant drug users are at higher risk of acquiring HIV which in turn can pass the virus to their infants. Being inefficient, drug users are more likely to loose their jobs, or to be involved in occupational accidents than non-users, endangering not only themselves but also those around them. The associated crime can disrupt neighborhoods due to violence among drug dealers, threatening the safety of the residents. There are incidents of recruiting younger children as lookouts and helpers, because of the lighter sentences imposed on juvenile offenders. (The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, Sep 2005) Poverty as in other forms of addiction also plays a major role as a great majority of homeless people have either a drug or alcohol problem, many have both. The importance of this matter is well reflected in $17.9 billion budget of the US Federal Government, on drug control for prohibition, prosecution, international law enforcement, prisons, treatment, and prevention in 1999. In 1998 drug-related health care costs in the United States was more than $9.9 billion. (The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, Sep 2005)