For a long time, illegal substances like heroin and cocaine have been framed as

For a long time, illegal substances like heroin and cocaine have been framed as the most harmful substances on society. But as you have been learning throughout this course, there are many harmful legal substances as well! There is also a new category of drugs called Novel Psychoactive Substances (NPS) that is posing a great public health threat. Using the first half of Chapter 3, along with the materials in the Week 5 field trip, responds to the following questions
What are novel psychoactive substances (NPS) and why are they so dangerous?
What is fentanyl and why is the scope of the problem so deadly in the US?
What is the “opioid crisis”? (Why is it called a “crisis”?)
Based on all the information you learned about in the first part of this chapter, and in the Week 5 field trip, which illegal or legal substance/drug (or category of drugs) has the most negative impact on the body, mind and society today, in your view? Why?
Be sure to use examples from the reading and field trip to support your answers to the above questions.***
field trip: https://www.drugabuse.gov/drugs-abuse/commonly-abused-drugs-charts
https://www.drugabuse.gov/sites/default/files/rx_drugs_placemat_508c_10052011.pdf
https://www.bmj.com/content/356/bmj.i6848.full
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25588018

http://nymag.com/news/features/synthetic-drugs-2013-4/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_KsaWpeCj98
https://www.drugabuse.gov/about-nida/noras-blog/2018/05/true-deadly-scope-americas-fentanyl-problem
https://www.dea.gov/drug-scheduling
https://www.who.int/substance_abuse/publications/global_alcohol_report/msb_gsr_2014_1.pdf