Cocaine Addiction

Cocaine is a drug that is manufactured from the leaf of the coca plant. It has been produced and used for over 100 years, while the leaves themselves, by some estimates, have been ingested for their stimulating effects for thousands of years. Cocaine is extracted from coca bushes that are grown mostly in Bolivia and Peru. There are two compounds that come from this extraction: hydrochloride salt and freebase. It is the hydrochloride salt part of the extraction that is most widely used by addicts, as this is the white powder that is taken intranasally (snorted) or intravenously (injected). The freebase portion of cocaine is smokable; it cannot be snorted.

According to the Office of National Drug Control Policy, it is estimated that there are 3.6 million chronic cocaine users in the United States. In the 1980s, cocaine use peaked at 5.7 million, based on data from the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse, or NHSDA. Cocaine use spans all age groups and cultural backgrounds but tends to be more common in men than in women. It also tends to have a higher occurrence in African American and Hispanic communities.

While the incidence of cocaine usage is lower than in previous decades, it is still quite a problem. There were over 420,000 users treated in emergency rooms for cocaine-related illnesses in 2009.