Recreational drug use

Recreational drug use involves taking one or more psychoactive substances to change one’s state of mind, typically for enjoyment or as a casual activity. Once inside the body, these drugs produce an intoxicating effect. They are usually grouped into three types: depressants, which slow down the central nervous system; stimulants, which speed it up; and hallucinogens, which alter perception. In everyday life, this kind of use is often accepted as a social habit rather than seen as a form of self-medication, though both drug use and addiction carry heavy stigma around the world.

Many people also take prescribed depressants like opioids, opiates, and benzodiazepines. Which substances are illegal varies by country, but commonly includes cannabis (though some places have legalized it), cocaine, opioids, MDMA, amphetamine, methamphetamine, psychedelics, benzodiazepines, and barbiturates. Around 2015, an estimated 5% of people worldwide aged 15 to 65—between 158 million and 351 million—had used controlled drugs at least once. Everyday recreational drugs include caffeine (in coffee, tea, soft drinks, and chocolate), alcohol (in beer, wine, cocktails, and spirits), nicotine (in tobacco, tobacco products, and e-cigarettes), cannabis and hashish (with legality varying by location), and the controlled substances listed in the UN’s Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs (1961) and Convention on Psychotropic Substances (1971). Since the early 2000s, the European Union has created several broad strategies to prevent the spread of recreational drug use and abuse among its population, raise awareness of the harms, and work with law enforcement agencies like Europol and EMCDDA to fight organized crime and the illegal drug trade in Europe.

Researchers have looked into why people use recreational drugs, with common theories pointing to genetics, personality, psychological issues, self-medication, sex, age, depression, curiosity, boredom, rebelliousness, a desire to belong, family and attachment problems, trauma history, school or work failure, socioeconomic stress, peer pressure, juvenile delinquency, drug availability, historical factors, and cultural influences. No single cause has been agreed upon; instead, experts often use a biopsychosocial model. Many factors can influence a person’s drug use, and they are not mutually exclusive. Regardless of genetics, mental health, or trauma, social factors heavily shape exposure to and availability of specific drugs and usage patterns.

Addiction researcher Martin A. Plant notes that some people go through a period of self-redefinition before starting recreational drug use. They often see drug use as part of a lifestyle tied to a subculture that offers heightened status and a way to challenge social norms. Plant says that from the user’s perspective, there are many positive reasons to join the drug-taking scene, and these reasons often relate to needs for friendship, pleasure, and status as much as to unhappiness or poverty. For many, becoming a drug user is a positive choice rather than a negative experience.

Anthropological research suggests that humans may have evolved to take advantage of plant neurotoxins. Using botanical chemicals to mimic natural neurotransmitters might have boosted survival rates, giving an evolutionary edge. A typically limited prehistoric diet may have made the benefits of psychoactive drugs more apparent, as these drugs themselves evolved to imitate neurotransmitters. Chemical-ecological adaptations and the genetics of liver enzymes, especially cytochrome P450, have led researchers to propose that humans have shared a co-evolutionary relationship with psychotropic plants for millions of years.

The severity and type of health risks from recreational drug use vary widely depending on the drug and the amount taken. Many factors in the user’s environment and personal makeup interact differently with each substance. Alcohol is sometimes considered one of the most dangerous recreational drugs. Alcoholic drinks, tobacco and nicotine products (like e-cigarettes), and cannabis are often seen by medical professionals as the most common gateway drugs. In the United States, Australia, and New Zealand, the typical onset of drinking alcohol, smoking tobacco, smoking cannabis, and using multiple drugs happens during adolescence and in middle school or secondary school.

Some early 21st-century studies suggested that low to moderate alcohol consumption, especially of red wine, might offer health benefits like lower risks of cardiovascular disease, stroke, and cognitive decline. This claim has been challenged, notably by British researcher David Nutt, a professor of neuropsychopharmacology at Imperial College London. He argued that studies showing benefits for moderate drinking in some middle-aged men failed to control for what the subjects had been drinking before the study began.