Home  |  Parents & Teachers  |  Mind Over Matter  |  Cocaine

The Brain's Response to Cocaine

Hi, my name’s Sara Bellum. Welcome to my magazine series exploring the brain’s response to drugs. In this issue, we’ll investigate the fascinating facts about the drug cocaine, which is considered a stimulant.

Have you eaten any chocolate or drunk any soda lately? If you have, there’s a good chance you gave your body a dose of a stimulant—caffeine, which is also in coffee.

Eating or drinking a large amount of caffeine can make you feel jittery, nervous, or energetic. That’s because caffeine—like any stimulant—changes the way your brain works.

But caffeine is just a mild example of a stimulant. Many other stimulant drugs are much stronger—and some are illegal and very dangerous.

Cocaine is made from the leaf of the coca plant. It often comes in the form of a white powder that some people inhale through their nose. Another form of cocaine, known as crack, can be smoked.

Next Page >>