Drug use can hurt the people who take drugs AND the people around them, including families, kids, and babies who aren't yet born.
Drug use can hurt the body and the brain, sometimes forever.
Drug use can also lead to addiction, a long-lasting brain disease in which people can't stop taking drugs on their own, even when they know that bad things could happen if they keep using them. Learn more about:
how drug use and mental health problems often happen together (see page 5)
the link between drug use and HIV/AIDS (see page 5)
Drug use can cause many problems:
fighting and violence inside and outside the home
money problems
trouble at school
trouble at work or losing a job
trouble in relationships
child abuse or neglect
driving crashes
arrests and jail
Visit the Easy-to-Read Drug Facts webpages listed under Drugs That People Abuse to learn more about effects of specific drugs
