What parts of the brain are affected by drugs? By your drug?

THE HUMAN BRAIN

It is important to know that drugs can change or alter important brain areas which are essential for life-sustaining functions and could change addiction from the compulsive drug abuse which is the step to addiction.

Brain areas which are affected by drug abuse is:

• The brain stem- this is the basic functional control to critical life such as heart rate, breathing and sleeping.


• The limbic system- this system contains the brain's rewards, it links or connects together for brain structures which regulate our ability to feel pleasure.
• Feeling pleasure motivates us to repeat behaviors such as eating - actions that are critical to our existence.
• The limbic system is activated when we perform these activities - and also by drugs of abuse. In addition, the limbic system is responsible for our perception of other emotions, both positive and negative, which explains the mood-altering properties of many drugs. The cerebral cortex is divided into areas that control specific functions. Different areas process information from our senses, enabling us to see, feel, hear, and taste. The front part of the cortex, the frontal cortex or forebrain, is the thinking center of the brain; it powers our ability to think, plan, solve problems, and make decisions.