This document discusses gateway drugs and their risks. It defines gateway drugs as milder substances like nicotine, alcohol, and marijuana that can expose people to harsher drugs. While these may seem harmless, their legal and socially accepted status can create curiosity about illegal drugs. Marijuana, tobacco, alcohol, cocaine, ecstasy and heroin are presented as common gateway substances. Statistics are provided showing links between early tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana use and increased likelihood of other drug problems. The document encourages awareness of gateway drug risks and has activities for students to generate slogans and research health issues.

2. HELLO MY
NAME IS MARK
ARIEL R. DAVID

19. GATEWAY
DRUGS

20. OBJECTIVES
a. Identify the risk of gateway drugs.
b. Raise awareness about risk of gateway drugs.
c. Value the importance of knowing the risk of
gateway drugs.

21. UNDERSTANDING
THE GATEWAY
DRUGS
Gateway drugs are milder drugs that
can open the door to exposure to or
experimentation with harsher
substances. For example, many people
may feel that nicotine and alcohol are
relatively harmless. This idea is
magnified by the fact that these
substances are legal to purchase and
use.

22. The fact that these substances are not
only legal but also easily accessible and
socially accepted can also create
curiosity or cravings for drugs that
aren’t legal and are much more
dangerous. In addition, when someone
abuses alcohol, prescription
medications, or marijuana, they stop
feeling as fearful of the potential harm
of other substances. They also easily
dismiss warnings to not risk their safety
or well-being.

24. MARIJUANA
Marijuana—also called weed, herb, pot, grass,
bud, ganja, Mary Jane, and a vast number of
number of other slang terms—is a greenish-
gray mixture of the dried flowers of Cannabis
sativa. Some people smoke marijuana in hand-
marijuana in hand-rolled cigarettes called joints;
in pipes, water pipes (sometimes called bongs),
or in blunts (marijuana rolled in cigar wraps)

25. BONGS
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY
JOINTS

26. TABACCO
Tobacco is a plant grown for its leaves,
which are dried and fermented before
being put in tobacco products. Tobacco
contains nicotine, an ingredient that can
lead to addiction, which is why so many
people who use tobacco find it difficult to
quit. There are also many other
potentially harmful chemicals found in
tobacco or created by burning it.
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA

27. CIGARETTE
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA

28. ALCOHOL
Like tobacco, alcohol is largely viewed as a
gateway drug. But, just how commonly abused
is alcohol? According to SAMHSA, in 2015, 20.8
million people over the age of 12 had a
substance use disorder and 15.7 million of
those people had an alcohol use disorder.
The likelihood of alcohol addiction is also
greater found in those who are younger. The
National Institute of Health has reported that
people between the ages of 18 and 24 are more
likely than older people to have a co-occurring
alcohol use disorder and other drug use
disorders.

30. BEER, WISKY, VODKA,
CHAMPAGNE ETC..

32. COCAINE

33. ECSTACY

34. HEROIN

35. Facts About Gateway Drugs
•People that smoke cigarettes as teens and even younger are up to 100 times more likely to smoke
marijuana. Those same people are also significantly more likely to try illicit substances such as cocaine
and heroin than people who do not smoke cigarettes.
•Of those teenagers and young adults who have used marijuana 3 to 10 times, 20% go on to use cocaine.
Of those who use marijuana 100 or more times, 75% go on to use cocaine.
•Marijuana smokers who tried this drug for the first time before age 17 have up to a 6 times greater chance
of developing a substance dependence problem.
•Teens who are heavy drinkers, meaning they consume at least five drinks on five occasions over 30 days,
are 12 times more likely to use illegal drugs than those who do not drink.
•Nearly 90% of cocaine users had first smoked tobacco, drank alcohol, or used marijuana

36. Behavioral Signs
•A change in the performance at work or school
•Missing work or school more frequently than normal
•Unexplained need for money or financial problems
•Engaging in secretive or suspicious behaviors
•Sudden change in friends, favorite hangouts, and hobbies
•Frequently getting into trouble when no prior history existed

37. GROUP ACTIVITY:
MAKE A SLOGAN ABOUT GATEWAY
DRUGS TO RAISE AWARENESS TO
YOUNG GENERATION.

38. Rubrics
40% - Originality
30% - Creativity
30% - Cleanliness and Behavior

39. ASSIGNMENT
SEARCH ABOUT HEALTH-RELATED
DRUGS ISSUES