Prominent health professionals in Nigeria have made a case for holistic tackling of drugs misuse, saying there is the need for a multi-dimensional approach to create a drug free society.
The experts: the Managing Director of Serenity Royale Hospital, Dr Kunle Adesina, Dr Abubakar Salami, Dr Sam Abah, Hajiya Salamatu Farouq Salamatu and David Folaranmi spoke at “Fly Above the High Conference” in Abuja with a theme titled: “A multi-dimensional approach to creating a drug-free society."
In their lecture papers made available on Thursday, one of the guests speakers, Dr. Adekunle Adesina, said that the effect of addiction was rarely limited to the person with the addiction but everyone around him or her would be affected in some way.
According to Adesina, addiction, which is a chronic, relapsing disorder characterised by compulsive drug seeking and use despite adverse consequences, is considered a brain disorder because it involves functional changes to the brain circuits involved in reward, stress, and self-control.
Adesina also cited a report by the United Nations Office on Drug and Crime in Nigeria which indicates that, “14.4% (14.3 million) of people aged between 15- and 64-years abuse drugs.
He said, “It is estimated that more than eight million children younger than age 18 live with at least one adult who has a SUD that is a rate of more than one in 10 children
“The majority of these children are younger than age 5 (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services [USDHHS], 2010) on parental drug use which is considered the chronic misuse of substances by a parent or care-giver in charge of a child.
“A large body of evidence spanning several decades has documented that the children of parents who abuse alcohol, tobacco, and drugs (henceforth collectively referred to as parental substance abuse) are more likely to develop a variety of emotional, behavioral, physical, cognitive, academic, and social problems in the future.
“Parental substance abuse interrupts a child’s normal development, which places these youngsters at higher risk for emotional, physical and mental health problems."
Elucidating further he said that it was important for the whole family to go into treatment “to help them understand the disease of addiction, understand why their loved ones did some of the things they did, take care of deep-seated resentment and healing of old wounds, addiction feeds off ignorance and denial–both from the persons suffering from it and the people surrounding them.
On how to achieve a drug free society, Adesina said, “Addiction affects every member of the family and so treatment should not only be focused on the sufferer but every member of the family, and the family members needs therapy and intervention as much as the addict.”
Also speaking on the “Role of family in drug demand reduction”, Dr. Salamatu Farouq Yahaya said that the incidences of drug consumption and abuse is to say the least, alarming, saying that the development should be of utmost concern to all within the Nigeria society and humanity in general.
She maintained that the family unit was the most important stakeholder in the quest for drug demand reduction, adding that drug demand reduction is the strategy and measures aimed at discouraging, preventing and reducing the public desire for illegal and illicit drugs sales and consumption.
Yahaya said “Spouses, parents, brothers, sisters, and extended family members are all stakeholders and must put in efforts and measures to counter the menace of illicit drug sales and use.
“The first strategy to drug demand reduction is to have an appropriate mindset. A lot of families see drug demand reduction as: “not our concern, business or responsibility.
“Therefore, having a dissociative mindset.
With a dissociative mindset, families are unable to see their all-important role in drug demand reduction.
Speaking on the way forward, Yahaya said, “Manufacturers and distributors of illicit drugs and other related substances are part and parcel of our society. They are in some cases family and friends that we know and relate with.
“All families should look beyond the immediate self and become active participants in drug demand reduction by taking up the civic responsibility of reporting persons involved in either production, distribution or consumption of illicit drugs to the appropriate authority.
“Families should see and embrace recreational activities as tools of drug demand reduction, see sporting activities as effective tools for teaching, nurturing, leadership development, resilience to life outcomes and challenges, the spiritual activities, open sermon, religious rites, acts of charity and compassion must be seen and established as family events for rejuvenation of the mind and by extension, a mechanism for drug demand reduction."
In his own lecture while contributing on how addiction rewires the brain, Dr Sam Abah, said that drug use of any type activated the same circuits as do behaviours linked to survival and pleasure, such as eating, bonding, and sex.
The expert further noted that drug causes a surge in levels of a brain chemical called dopamine, which result in increased feelings of pleasure. The brain remembered this pleasure and wanted it repeated.
He said, “With repeated drug exposure, the brain may adapt to the presence of the substance, leading to tolerance, where higher doses of the drug are required to achieve the desired effects.
"Chronic drug use can lead to physical dependence, characterised by withdrawal symptoms when the drug is discontinued.
“Chronic drug use can dysregulate the brain's stress response systems, including the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. “Drugs can alter the release of stress hormones such as cortisol, leading to increased stress sensitivity and exacerbation of anxiety or depressive symptoms,” Abah added.