The most common hard drugs in use in Nigeria are cannabis and tramadol. These drugs are also illegal mainly by legislation. Some years ago, in 2016, we discussed on this page the propriety of perhaps legislating cannabis into legal usage in Nigeria because of its obvious useful pharmacological and medical properties. Sadly, legislation of this nature in Nigeria is subjective and totally prone to amnesia because even the law enforcement officials use the substances. They also regularly visit the notorious places where they are marketed and sometimes, find themselves as the official conduit of these substances to some of the senior public figures we admire. Consequently, a hard drug is a pharmaceutical compound that is able to cause addiction, but can also cause severe physical, psychological or emotional dependence. There are other illegal drugs in use and in circulation in different circles around the country depending on the purchasing power available and the category of people who make it accessible. These include cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine (meth), crack and glue. Other hard drugs include morphine, nicotine, hydrocodone and oxycodone. A whole class of drugs called the benzodiazepines belongs to this group as does rohypnol.
Petrol and even faeces belong to this class and, for those who can obtain a dose of tramadol for as little as N100, it is easy to imagine the scale of the problem. Inevitably, it shows in the way many people behave and conduct themselves around our towns and cities today. Wilful misbehaviour that often leads to frequently unprovoked violence, crime and antisocial conduct is there for all to see. Glue, faeces and petrol are believed to deliver highs when the fumes they exude are sniffed. However, cannabis is peculiar in that it is more likely to cause depression and slow down conduction movements between the body and the central nervous system. The common names of this particular substance are weed, genye, blaze, weewee, marijuana, ghanja, grass, gbana and taba. Other names are green leaf, joint, pot, kush and yoyo. It is typically smoked like one might smoke a cigarette or it may be mixed with tobacco and is sometimes mixed with hot drinks like gin and drunk or into food and eaten. In any of these ways, it is rapidly absorbed into the bloodstream to produce its unique effects. It is because of the speed with which these effects are produced that this particular drug often produces so much dependence. When people become dependent on a product and cannot obtain it regularly or smoothly, they could kill and main to do so.
This is part of the reasons why these substances are so dangerous to both the user and the seller. On a short-term basis, cannabis can produce intense sensations to sound and colour. The users lose their social inhibitions and can do anything anywhere and anytime without a sensation of remorse or regret. They become confused and talk irrationally and their memory becomes altered as well. They also show some evidence of anxiety and harbour unwarranted suspicion of others. Undue worry, nervousness and tension then follow such thinking to the point of irrationality such that abnormal talkativeness becomes evident. The eyes become dry as well, and bloodshot, reduced muscle coordination and balance becomes part of the whole picture and the mouth and throat also become dry. Conversely, the appetite is increased but the libido may be diminished. The long-term effects are dependent on age. Regular use during the teenage years brings about a more negative result than a similar level of use during adulthood. Other effects are paranoia and psychosis, reduced ability to concentrate on anything and reduced motivation. The person will also come down with basic learning short-comings and poor memory. In making a case for medical use of cannabis, however, the dose is usually small and closely regulated.
Cocaine on the other hand is a stimulant. In its native South America where the coca plant is grown, the peasants chew the raw leaves for its ability to boost their energy, the effect of which can last from a few minutes to several hours. Cocaine is mostly available as a powder that can be snorted into the nostrils or injected into a vein or mixed into food or drinks and swallowed like that. A lot of people who take this substance are dependent on it. The common names are coke, powder, rock, snow and blow. Some of its short-term side effects are delusions of immense power, knowledge and strength, increased libido, unpredictable and violent conduct, dry mouth, faster heart beat and breathing, and increased sense of pride and confidence. Fear is banished and the person feels energetic, alert and quite strong. Therefore, they often court danger when they are like this. The users talk more and also feel happier than usual. Therefore, the regular users of this drug will do anything to always have a supply of it especially when they have become hooked on it. The marketers who target such vulnerable people can turn them into slaves and other unsavoury beasts since they would do anything for their bosses to get a dose or joint. The long-term effects of this substance can be far more profound, therefore, than is seen with cannabis.
Some of the long-term effects of cocaine are heart damage, kidney failure, nose bleeds, sinus problems, eating disorders and weight loss as well as sexual dysfunction. There may be a feeling of exhaustion even when no meaningful work has been done and there would be associated paranoia, anxiety and psychosis. As a result of all these, there would be sleep disturbance and loss of sobriety as well as an increased risk of stroke. But for other previously mentioned drugs like rohypnol and the benzodiazepines which include drugs like Valium and Lexotan, the attraction is in their ability to cause sleep.
For this major property alone, youngsters in particular have been known to spike the drinks of their victims with an overdose of the said drugs. The deep sleep thereby brought about is such that it allows for a whole range of nefarious acts to be conducted ranging from rape and kidnapping to murder. In many parts of the country, teenagers and young adults have learned how to add up these various drugs to produce a toxic effect that causes a wide variety of effects including death. The addition of tramadol to viagra, for example, is a common practice and the effects are encouraging enough to the users to want to continue the practice even if they have occasional side effects.
The prevailing environment in Nigeria with its weak regulation of everything makes nonsense of every effort made at controlling any of these problems. Novalgin and analgin, which were banned more than eight years ago can still be obtained in most parts of Nigeria once you know the right people to go to. The same is true for tramadol and codeine. And it is equally true for those substances that are described here as illegal drugs, the hard drugs mentioned above. At least once a week, there is a major find of cannabis in transit somewhere in the country. The same is true of cocaine at one or more of the international, or domestic airports. Ditto for tramadol and codeine. It means there is a huge and burgeoning market for all these products throughout Nigeria. As for tramadol and cocaine, there is the added possibility that the insurgents active in various parts of the country have also muscled their way into the trade, reaping huge profits to fund their arms purchases and to get their foot soldiers hooked on the drugs while nursing the feelings of superhuman capabilities. This makes them incredibly dangerous and able to act with absolute impunity and without thinking of any consequences. Such a toxic mixture of men and drugs will only keep on fuelling the violent extremism to which we are all witnesses with the attendant bloodshed and human suffering.
Questions and answers
Dear doctor, I have been having vaginal discharge for some years now but from January till now, I haven’t seen my period and the odour of the discharge is offensive. 0907xxxxxxx
A vaginal discharge lasting a few days to perhaps one week is bad enough; when it has lasted for several years as you said above, it is frankly unbelievable. In the 21st century, it is probably a sad tale to read this kind of thing here and I am sorry that I am allowing my emotions to get into the issue. It is not surprising after such a long time for it to have a bad smell. You should see a gynaecologist and have the relevant tests done. Treatment will follow and that will be followed by more testing to determine if the infection is cleared before you can be declared as treated. Sadly, you did not tell us your age and if you have any children yet. These are important for the purposes of making a prognostication for the eventual outcome of your treatment.
Dear doctor, sir, is there any solution to keloids? I have used some prescribed cream but it keeps on growing and itching, though it is an inheritance from my mother. 0906xxxxxxx
You did not inherit it from your mother. You do not inherit keloids but it might run in a family such that certain members will have it while others will not. Furthermore, the solution is not obtainable by the application of creams and your doctor should not have chosen this path. You will need to see a plastic surgeon for the proper protocol to be followed in getting you the right kind of treatment, including its removal if the size permits. Until you do that, the keloids will continue growing and itching you. I made a reference to size because in some cases, it is not considered necessary to even try to remove keloids because of the amount of risk that would entail. In other situations, removal is actively pursued depending on where in the body the keloids is located.
Dear doctor, my dad has been ill for a long time now and high valume (not sure what this is) treatment has helped in keeping him alive all the while but given to recent development of pains and embarrassment, I am now contemplating suicide capsules to be given to him in just one night to end it all. But what do you think? 0806xxxxxxx
This is a wrong approach to solving a difficult problem. The administration of what you call suicide capsules is unlawful in Nigeria and a great many countries. It is assisted suicide at best and cold blooded murder at worst and does not have my support. Continue to do the best you have been doing and he might miraculously get better. It is never over until it is truly over.
Dear doctor, may this mail meet you in wellness and sound health. I’m avid reader of your column in Sunday PUNCH and I can’t thank you enough for your good work for humanity. Please sir, I want you to advise me if these partners are suitable for marriage without hindrances or medical impediments.
Man: Blood group A+(Rhesus positive),Genotype : AA
Woman : Blood group A+,(Rhesus positive) Genotype: AA.
Thanking you in anticipation and I look forward to hearing from you soon. Best regards. [email protected]
Good day, and thank you very much for your kind words and your prayers. There is no problem there at all. Both of them are compatible in terms of their blood group and genotype. Best wishes.
Dear doctor, I was placed on treatment with omeprazole, clarithromycin and amoxycillin for one week by my doctors for peptic ulcer. After that, they placed me on what they called maintenance dose with omeprazole for another six weeks and stopped it. Now, I don’t suffer from any symptom at all in my tummy and I feel so well. But is it not better to still use the omeprazole once in a while to prevent re-occurrence? I am just thinking sir. Thank you. 0802xxxxxx
Greetings to you as well. When you have been comprehensively treated in the way you have used those medications, it is expected that you have been cured of the condition. There is no reason for you to take them again “once in a while” in order to prevent a recurrence. It is like saying you have had treatment for pneumonia and obtained cure but that you now want to use antibiotics once a while to prevent any further attack of pneumonia. The kind of condition you were treated for does not behave like that.
Dear Doctor, I have a five-month old baby girl who has been having catarrh and cough. Her nose and her breathing are disturbing because both are so noisy as if she is struggling to breathe. I have taken her to the hospital and the test showed that she has an infection in her chest and the catarrh inside her is more than the one coming out so they gave us Otrivin nasal drops to be applied every six hours for one week and Aristobet-N nasal drop that she will use for two weeks. Please sir, so what multivitamin can I give her to boost her immune system? 0803xxxxxxx
This is interesting on the whole. Since you say you went to a hospital, it is important to stick with providing an answer to the question you asked. You can get her any of the common multivitamins you can buy off the shelf like Afrabvite or Multivite syrup and allow a pharmacist to direct you on their usage.
Dear doctor, please, my old man, now aged 72 years of age has been complaining of serious pain in the lower part of his tummy for nearly one year and we took him to a hospital where the doctor diagnosed appendicitis and said we should allow him to be admitted immediately for the operation. But another doctor I spoke with on his mobile told me that appendicitis is not common at that age and that we should do a scan and an X-Ray of his tummy. We did so and they found 2 big stones inside his bladder. What do we now do about this? And why did the first doctor not recommend the tests that the second doctor ordered us to do? 0802xxxxxxx
Well, good day to you as well. It is not possible for me to say why the first doctor did not ask for the investigations you ended up doing. The main thing here now is that the tests were conducted and there is a reason for the pain. So, you should now take your dad to a urologist who will examine him further and advise you on how to proceed with the necessary treatment.
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