What are drink & drugs?

There are thousands of different sorts of drink and drugs and they can come as liquids, powders, pills, crystals and herbs in all sorts of different shapes, sizes and colours.

Types of drugs

Legal drugs like alcohol, cigarettes and caffeine (in coffee, tea and Red Bull)
Illegal drugs like heroin, crack cocaine, cannabis, ecstasy and speed
Prescribed or 'Over the Counter' drugs - these are prescribed by your Doctor to treat specific medical conditions. 'Over the Counter' drugs are medicines that can be bought in chemists, supermarkets etc to treat specific medical conditions.

But there are loads of other drugs people use to get high, or for other effects, and it's important to know what they are before you think about taking them, so check out the A-Z and the rest of our drugs info.

Drink and drugs fall into rough groups - uppers, downers, trippies and others.

Uppers speed up your body, making you more alert and awake, and talkative. Uppers include cigarettes, speed, cocke, crack, coffee, tea and energy drinks like Red Bull.

Downers slow down your body, making you restful and relaxed. Downers include drink, heroin, sleeping tablets and ketamine.

Trippies affect how you see and hear things, and how you htink and feel about things. Trippies include acid, mushrooms and ecstasy.

Others have lots of different effects, and include cannabis and poppers.