• Cocaine Facts (Blow, Crack)

    Street Terms: Coke, snow, flake, blow, nose candy, snowball, tornado, wicky stick, Perico, Yayo

    What is It?

    Cocaine is a powerfully addictive stimulant drug. The powdered form of cocaine is either snorted or injected. Crack is cocaine that comes in a rock crystal that is heated and smoked. The term "crack" refers to the crackling sound produced by the rock as it is heated.

    Many cocaine users report that they seek but fail to achieve the same experience as they had with their first use. Some users will increase their dose in an attempt to intensify and prolong the effect, but this can also increase the risk of adverse psychological or physiological effects.

    Cocaine can cause heart attacks even in young abusers.

    Risks

    Increased body temperature, heart rate, and blood pressure / Headaches / Abdominal pain and nausea / Decreased appetite, resulting in malnutrition / Irritability, restlessness, anxiety, and paranoia / Paranoid psychosis (loss of touch with reality and auditory hallucinations) / Addiction or dependence / Loss of smell, nosebleeds, and a chronically runny nose (from snorting) / Severe bowel gangrene (intestine tissue dies) (from swallowing) / Increased risk of HIV and other diseases / Respiratory arrest (stopped breathing) / Heart attack or stroke which may cause sudden death / Cocaine and alcohol combined dramatically increases the risk of sudden death