History of Drugs

No one really knows the history of drugs, and drug use for the origins of the association of humans and drugs are shrouded in the mists of time. Not much is known about early drug use no one knows who was the first person to smoke a joint or get high on magic mushrooms or opiates. Nevertheless, what we do know about the history of drugs is that no known society, culture or civilisation has been entirely drug free. In fact every society has used some drug, usually many. Some commentators suggest that it is an intrinsic characteristic (maybe even a need) of human beings to experience an altered state of consciousness.

Support for this view can be seen even today in western society's relationship with legal drugs such as tea, coffee, tobacco, alcohol and the caffeine loaded soft drinks, as well as the ever-increasing numbers of users of illegal drugs such as cannabis, ecstasy and opiates. However our relationships with drugs are fickle and have not been constant across time and place. For all of today's illegal drugs (except the new designer drugs) have been legal at some point in time in some countries and conversely all the legal drugs have been illegal at some point in time in some countries. Indeed in different times and in different places almost all drugs have been exalted and encouraged or decried and banned. Spread of Drugs opium use in the USA and UK in 18th and 19th centuries

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