Cocaine

Cocaine powder, freebase and crack are all forms of cocaine. They are stimulants with powerful, but short-lived, effects. Stimulants temporarily speed up the processes of your mind and body. ‘Freebase’ cocaine and ‘crack’ cocaine, can be smoked, and so can reach the brain very rapidly in high dosage. Snorted powder cocaine is absorbed more slowly. Hence, smoked freebase or crack tends to be much stronger and more addictive than snorted powder cocaine. However, all forms of cocaine prepared for injection (whether powder cocaine or crack) can also reach the brain rapidly in high doses and so can be very addictive too.

coke

Slang

Street names for drugs can vary around the country. For powder cocaine – coke, Charlie, C, white, Percy, snow, toot. For crack – rocks, wash, stones, pebbles, base, freebase

The effects

Taking cocaine makes users feel on top of the world. Its effect is like the stimulant ‘amphetamines’ (speed) but is stronger and doesn't last as long.
People taking it feel wide-awake, confident and on top of their game.
Cocaine is a stimulant, so it can raise the body’s temperature, make the heart beat faster and stave off feelings of hunger.
The effects of crack smoking are virtually immediate, peaking for about two minutes and lasting for only about 10 minutes. For snorted coke there is a slower time to peak but the effects still don’t last that long (around 20-30 minutes).

Chances of getting hooked

Coke is very addictive. It can be difficult to resist the craving and strong psychological dependence due to changes in the brain. Recent evidence suggests possible long-term changes to the nervous system.

Although psychological dependence is more of a problem than physical withdrawal symptoms - low moods and feeling very rough soon after stopping can tempt people to take more coke.

The law

Cocaine and crack are Class A drugs - illegal to have, give away or sell. Possession can get you up to seven years in jail. Supplying someone else, including your friends, can get you life and an unlimited fine.

Appearance and use

‘Coke’, or cocaine powder, is a white powder that's usually divided into lines on a smooth surface and snorted up the nose with a rolled up note or straw. It is not easily smoked.
‘Crack’ is a form of cocaine made into small lumps or rocks (which makes a cracking noise when burnt). A rock of crack is about the size of a raisin. It's usually smoked in a pipe, glass tube, plastic bottle or in foil. You can easily smoke either ‘crack’ or ‘freebase’ forms of cocaine in this way.
Both powder and crack forms of cocaine can be prepared to make a solution for injecting.

Cost

Prices can vary from region to region. The prices given here are an average of street prices reported from 20 different parts of England. A gram of coke powder generally costs between £30 and £60. A crack rock costs between £12 and £20. It's sometimes sold cheaper by the slice or as a 'clubbing rock' for about £10.

Purity

A wrap of cocaine powder can be cut with, for example, sugar or starch. The purity of crack depends on the purity of the cocaine used originally to produce the crack.

The risks

After a big night on cocaine, it's not unusual for people to feel like they've got the flu.
Some people are over-confident on it and so may take very careless risks.
The hit from coke doesn't last long and from ‘crack’ lasts even less. When the effects start to wear off there can be a very strong temptation to take more, particularly with the long ‘come down’, the crash period can happen days later.
Crack and cocaine powder users have died from overdoses. High doses can raise the body's temperature, cause convulsions and respiratory or heart failure. Risk of overdosing increases if crack is mixed with heroin, barbiturates (sedatives) or alcohol.
Cocaine is highly risky for anybody with high blood pressure or a heart condition. Perfectly healthy, young people can have a fit or heart attack after taking too much coke and you may not know you’ve got a pre-existing heart condition.
Those who get into cocaine very often find they begin to crave it more. And because the effects wear off so quickly, cocaine and crack can become an expensive habit to keep.
Using cocaine a lot makes people feel depressed and run down.
People who use crack or coke regularly often develop serious problems with anxiety and paranoia. It's a known cause of panic attacks.
Large or frequent use of coke tends to knock sexual desire on the head.
Cocaine can bring previous mental health problems to the surface. If a close relative of yours has had serious mental health problems, it’s possible there might be an increased risk for you in taking cocaine.
Injecting any drug can cause vein damage, ulcers and gangrene, particularly with dirty equipment. Sharing of needles and other injecting works can help the spread of HIV and hepatitis virus infections.
It's easier to overdose if you’re injecting your cocaine. Cocaine is a local anaesthetic and it deadens pain at the injection site. This makes it harder for users to notice the damage they may be doing.
Using cocaine with other drugs or alcohol (whether with depressant or stimulant substances) can substantially increase risk of side-effects.
Alcohol and cocaine together can be particularly dangerous as the substances interact in the body to produce a toxic chemical. The risks further increase if other drugs are taken as well.
Injecting a mixture of cocaine and heroin, known as a 'speedballing' is a dangerous cocktail – with potentially fatal results.
Taking cocaine when you're pregnant can damage your baby. It may cause miscarriage, premature labour and low birth weight babies. Babies born to mothers who keep using throughout their pregnancy may experience a withdrawal syndrome after delivery.