Subs Research 3 Replies
Classmate ChrisTop of Form
Stimulants and Depressants are on the opposite end of the continuum. Stimulants increase the chemical and and electrical activity in the central and peripheral nervous system (Inaba, 2014). Depressants do the opposite by depressing the central nervous system. This can cause sedation, muscle relaxation, drowsiness, and if used in excess, can cause a come (Inaba, 2014). While these may be opposites in terms of how they react in the body, both can do real damage in different ways.
Alcohol is an interesting drug because it can be hard to determine if alcohol is a stimulant or depressant. The stimulating effects that alcohol can produce are increased heart rate, a sense of energy and lowered inhibitions. However, these can only be seen in the initial stages of intoxication, after which the sedation effects begin to set in. This is what makes alcohol a depressant. This is based on the dominant effects to the central nervous system.
Image 1: https://images.app.goo.gl/edm727X6irF2N5xP6
One study I found determined if exercise can be used as a a treatment for stimulant use disorder. The Stimulant Reduction Intervention using Dosed Exercise (STRIDE)conducted a randomized clinical trail conducted in nine residential addiction treatment programs across the United States over a three year period. The 302 eligible participants were randomly assigned to a group using exercise as part of the treatment program or health education as part of the treatment program. Both groups also conducted normal treatment protocols in conjunction with exercise or health education as the variable (Trivedi, 2017). This study showed modestly but significantly higher percentage in abstinent days in the exercise group, suggesting that exercise may improve outcomes for stimulant users who have better adherence to an exercise dose (Trivedi, 2017).
The image below shows that people with substance use disorders find that a variety of treatment methods work best when overcoming addiction. Theses can include, MAT, psychotherapy, and mutual help-groups. Patients with various substance use disorders find that exercise helps distract them from their cravings (Harvard.edu, 2018).
Image 2: https://images.app.goo.gl/BcfVhqC37tkuzSuN6
Another article that I researched looked at the cardiorespiratory fitness and body composition of stimulant users. This was a baseline analysis of the STRIDE cohort. Some of the reasons for the study were that little is known about the physical health of stimulant users, cardiorespiratory fitness levels are below average in this population, stimulant users may be considered overweight based on BMI, and improving fitness and body composition needs to be a part of the recovery program. A total of 302 individuals were enrolled in a randomized program. Individuals with heavy substance use report poorer levels of physical health and higher levels of chronic disease (Stoutenberg, 2017). This study observed reduced cardiorespiratory fitness and increased BMI levels in the population compared to population norms. This places them at an increased risk of mortality and future cardiovascular and metabolic disease (Stoutenberg, 2017).
The image below demonstrates discontinued prolonged use of high doses CNS depressants can lead to withdrawal. Because they work by slowing the brain activity, a sign of abuse is when you stop taking the drug, the brain can have a dramatic rebound causing you to seizure.
Image 3: https://images.app.goo.gl/18625YLtbq8Bwkjb7
References
· Trivedi, M. H., Greer, T. L., Rethorst, C. D., Carmody, T., Grannemann, B. D., Walker, R., . . . Nunes, E. V. (2017). Randomized controlled trial comparing exercise to health education for stimulant use disorder: Results from the CTN-0037 STimulant reduction intervention using dosed exercise (STRIDE) study. The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 78(8), 1075-1082. doi:10.4088/JCP.15m10591
· Stoutenberg, M., Rethorst, C. D., Vidot, D. C., Greer, T. L., & Trivedi, M. H. (2017). Cardiorespiratory fitness and body composition of stimulant users: A baseline analysis of the STRIDE cohort. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 78, 74-79. doi:10.1016/j.jsat.2017.05.005
Inaba, D. S., & Cohen, W. E. (2014). Uppers, downers, all arounders: Physical and mental effects of psychoactive drugs (8th ed.). Medford, OR: CNS Productions, Inc. ISBN: 9780926544390.
https://journeypure.com/ask-our-doctors/alcohol/is-alcohol-a-stimulant-or-depressant/
U.S. National Library of Medicine: “Stimulant and Sedative Effects of Alcohol.”
https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/can-exercise-help-conquer-addiction-2018122615641
https://www.spineuniverse.com/treatments/medication/central-nervous-system-cns-depressants-stimulants
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