October 2 is observed as the National Anti-Drug Addiction Day to mark the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi who vociferously spoke against the use of drugs and addiction. But, drug use, especially among the youth, has been on the rise.
A 2019 national study conducted by AIIMS-Delhi in association with 10 medical institutes and 15 NGOs, on prevalence of drug abuse in the country, establishes that a substantial percentage of people use psychoactive substances (alcohol, cannabis and ophoids), and adult men top the list of drugs users. The study also says that alcohol is the most commonly used psychoactive substance followed by cannabis, ophoids (heroin, opium) and inhalers.
“Addiction generally begins with alcohol, moves towards nicotine and gaanja – considered as gateways to hard drugs – and then hard substances like ICE, MDME, etc,” says Psychiatrist Dr Manu Tiwari, Founder, Manas Ganga Clinic, Noida. Dr Tiwari says he gets about 30-40 patients per month at his centre and “ours is not even a de-addiction centre” brought by their families for de-addiction. This number at just one of the clinics in a small NCR town of Noida points to a worrisome situation. The AIIMS report says that over half the people with ophoid disorders come from Delhi, Maharashtra, UP, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh.
“Patients at our centre are in the age group 16-25, and most of them get introduced to drugs by their peers,” says Dr Tiwari. “But some are from dysfunctional families. And some are genuinely genetically vulnerable, impulsive by nature who start consuming drugs just to seek a thrill,” he adds. In either case, once a beginning has been made a person spirals downhill till the point of no return, unless the family intervenes. “In areas where drug abuse is high, studies have found every third person is hooked on to drugs other than alcohol and tobacco; the mean age being 23.
A large number of drug abusers start in their teens,” says IVF & Infertility Specialist Dr Gauri Agarwal, Founder, Seeds of Innocence. Since the consumption and possession of narcotics is punishable under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act 1985, the large number of users is attributable to the existence of rampant racket selling illicit drugs, often in adulterated form that is much more dangerous to health. Drug use leads to many health problems, and has a direct effect on fertility. “Cannabis can cause low testosterone levels in men, hamper the ability to produce sperm, or produce poor quality of sperm, and even lead to impotency.
Studies have shown that over one-third of the chronic exclusive marijuana smokers suffer from low sperm count. Men with a five-year or greater history of cocaine use are twice likely to have low sperm motility (the ability of sperms to move),” says Dr Agarwal.
“In women, drugs such as marijuana may disrupt the ovulation cycle, while heroin, cocaine, and crack cocaine, may additionally increase the risk for pelvic infection,” she adds. The good thing is you can get out of it, though the road uphill can be tough and long. “About 20 per cent patients come for de-addiction on their own. The rest are brought in by their families. But it is incorrect to say that a drug addict cannot become clean,” says Dr Tiwari, adding that it takes about two years for a person to be totally drug-free.