This title was first published in 2000: A study of drugs - the different kinds of drugs, the reasons why people take drugs, the ways in which people have used drugs, and some of the difficulties to which drug-taking can lead. The various hazards of use discussed include the physical and psychological health of users, the social penalties incurred by use of abuse, and the risk of dependence. In addition, the effects of drugs may be directly linked to the drug effect or indirectly related to behavioural patterns of use or to social consequences of use. The book is also about the ordinariness of drug taking. Where drugs are presented as though they were something alien and unusually dangerous, it tries to put drug-taking in a more balanced perspective, showing that even those who drink tea or coffee are drug takers. There are updated definitions of the main terms used within the fields of drugs and alcohol.