How to Define Gateway Drugs
For decades, parents, educators and public health professionals have warned young people about the dangers of mind-altering substances and cautioned that trying one drug will inevitably lead to more drug use. The concept of a gateway drug was created to highlight the progression of addiction and its vulnerability to youth and public health. How do you define gateway drugs?
Gateway drugs are substances that become habit-forming and eventually lead to use of harder substances, which generally are much more addictive and have greater health consequences. It is part of the belief that less addictive drugs like alcohol, marijuana and nicotine, can easily lead to using harder drugs. But how much of this concept is shaped by fear-based campaigns and how much of it is backed by science?
Teens being curious, trying out marijuana and drinking alcohol in their youth is one thing. Having a full-blown substance use disorder is another thing. For many years, there was little scientific evidence to prove that these so-called gateway drugs could increase the risk of drug dependence and addiction. The lack of supporting evidence now has many questioning whether the gateway drug concept is real.
Define Gateway Drugs Theory
Gateway drugs are accessible, legal or culturally tolerated substances that are believed to increase the probability of using more dangerous, illicit drugs later on. The idea of gateway drugs is deeply rooted in the theory of addiction. The theory suggests that a person who starts out using mild substances, then builds tolerance and then gets bored and moves on to seeking a stronger and more dangerous high.
This hypothesis often specifies a pattern of substance use during adolescence that precedes progressive use of illicit substances. When people are asked to define gateway drugs, they are referring to substances that can initially unlock the door to a broader world of substance abuse. The most common gateway drugs include alcohol, marijuana and nicotine.
Use and abuse of these substances is very common in young people. So in their eyes, these drugs may be considered mild and even safe. This skewed perception can lead them to use more illicit substances like cocaine and heroin. However, this is not always the outcome for every single drug use case. Addiction is not a straight line and there are in fact many factors that lead to the development of a substance use disorder.
What are Gateway Drugs? The Big Three
The most popular gateway drugs include alcohol, nicotine and marijuana. Other substances like prescription opioids, prescription amphetamines and inhalant drugs can also be considered gateway drugs, though less popular.
Alcohol
Alcohol is one of the first intoxicating and mind-altering substances a young person experiences. It is legal and often found in the refrigerator of their own homes. When the developing brain is introduced to alcohol, it can alter impulse control and decision-making centers. Alcohol lowers inhibitions and can make a young person more likely to take risks they otherwise would avoid, including use of more dangerous substances.
Nicotine
Nicotine is a highly addictive substance that impacts the brain. Research has found that nicotine can impact brain development, showing that early exposure can change the way synapses are formed in youth brains. It alters the brain’s reward system to make other drugs seem more appealing and rewarding when tried later. Today, vaping and other e-cigarettes have created a new and highly accessible avenue for young people to become addicted to nicotine.
Marijuana
While it is true that many of those who use substances like heroin and cocaine have used marijuana first, the correlation does not equal causation. In fact, most people who use marijuana do not go on to use harder drugs. Marijuana is a drug often experimented on by young people. The debate over the legality of the drug is still divided between state and federal standings. But the act of buying marijuana can expose users to dealers who also supply harder narcotics.
How accurate is the Gateway Drug Theory?
The concept of gateway drugs was developed in the 1970s when scientists suggested that those who experimented with alcohol, tobacco and marijuana during the early teenage years could be at increased risk for the use of stronger drugs later in life. The term was officially coined in the 1980s when anti-drug activists began using the term to support emerging anti-drug laws and policies.
When it comes to addiction, each person experiences their own level of risk for drug abuse. Using gateway drugs can put you at multiple risk factors for increased risk of long-term substance abuse. This is because someone who has already relied on substances is more likely to consider using harder drugs as the effects of gateway drugs begin to wane.
An example of this is in some people who are accustomed to feeling high from marijuana and can no longer achieve that same high with a reasonable amount; the person is more likely to consider using harder drugs to achieve the desired high. Another example is when individuals abuse alcohol and prescription drugs; they can stop feeling as fearful of the potential harm of other substances. This thought process can easily dismiss the warning signs of safety and well-being.
But, using alcohol and marijuana doesn’t necessarily lead to addiction to other drugs. There are many other risk factors to take into account.
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Addiction Risk Factors
- History of mental health struggles. Oftentimes, the desire to use substances stems from the desire to self-medicate to manage stressful and traumatic emotions brought on by mental health disorders. Undiagnosed anxiety, depression, ADHD or PTSD can cause a person to continuously seek out stronger substances to numb the emotional pain.
- Social circle and peer pressure. The power of social influence on teens’ drug behavior is immense. Young people are wired to seek out acceptance from their peers. And if a teen is associated with a social group where heavy drug use is normal, the pressure to use drugs is even greater.
- Environment. There are very powerful environmental triggers for drug abuse. A stressful home environment, poverty and neighborhood crime all contribute. If a person grows up in a home where substance abuse is normal, they are more likely to adopt this same habit.
- Family history and genetic predisposition. If a person in the family has a substance addiction, it is likely that it can be genetic and passed down to other members of the family.
Debunking the Gateway Drug Theory
The theory was initially formulated to track and characterize the natural history of substance abuse. But most of these studies found that exposure to moderate or high amounts of alcohol beginning in late adolescence and early adulthood did not, in fact, impact subsequent cocaine use later in adulthood.
Other reports found no correlation between alcohol, tobacco and marijuana use during the teen years and increased use of other illicit drugs during adulthood. National anti-drug programs like Drug Abuse Resistance Education specifically outlined consequences of the potential gateway drugs to help promote anti-drug awareness. But officials of the program later admitted that use of these drugs didn’t necessarily mean people would move on to harder substances.
Gateway drugs do carry a potential risk of dependence and addiction due to their impact on the brain. But this is not the case with every person and there are other competing risk factors that sway the outcome of drug addiction.
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References:
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5506797
https://www.promises.com/addiction-blog/definition-of-a-gateway-drug/
https://powerofrecovery.org/blog/gateway-drugs-what-are-they/
https://www.northpointrecovery.com/blog/gateway-drugs/
https://www.addictions.com/blog/are-gateway-drugs-scare-tactics-or-the-real-deal
https://www.drugrehab.com/guides/gateway-drugs
