developed for the treatment of depression. Furthermore, there are Cocaine Anonymous groups, National Cocaine Hotline(1-800-COCAINE) ,and rehabilitation centers that all work to reduce the number of potential and current cocaine addicts.Despite, the knowledge of the drug, cocaine is still popular in society. One-tenth of the population - over twenty two million people have tried cocaine. Each day five thousand more people will experiment with it. Studies indicate that crack users cut across all racial, social, and economic boundaries. Part of the drug=s mystique was its association with celebrities in the music, sports, and show business world=s. Young single people are the most frequent users, with male users outnumbering female users two to one. The large percentage of crack users are males between twenty and thirty years old. Nine out of ten cocaine users started as teenagers. Surprisingly, the average age of starting cocaine users is fourteen years old. Although adolescents do not represent the majority of crack users, the problem is increasing among these individuals.Cocaine may not always affect today=s youth directly, but indirectly. Similar to alcohol, cocaine and pregnancy can be a fatal combination. Cocaine use during pregnancy affects the unborn baby as well as the carrier of the child. The unborn child has no choice but to be dependent on cocaine due the mother=s mistakes. Some mothers are unaware, that their unborn child suffers the affects of cocaine during pregnancy. Exposed to the drug in the womb and born addicted to crack cocaine, this child experiences severe withdrawal symptoms. When a pregnant woman takes a hit of crack cocaine, the fetus loses sufficient blood and air - and suffocates briefly. For the mother, the drug=s euphoric effect lasts only about twenty minutes. For the growing fetus, the cocaine stays in its system for more than two weeks. In the womb, the child is often re-exposed because the cocaine does n...
