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Drug abuse is the habitual misuse of a drug. It may include using illegal drugs or using prescription medications for non-prescribed purposes.

Drug abuse can result in tolerance, whereby increasingly larger amounts of a drug must be taken to produce the same effect.

Some people who abuse drugs become addicted. Addiction is a chronic illness that involves the uncontrollable craving and use of drugs despite the potential or actual harm to the person that may result from it. Addiction is different from using a large quantity of drugs or using drugs frequently. Those addicted to drugs often cannot quit by themselves and must receive treatment to help them stop using.

Drug abuse can cause a variety of problems, including:

• Disruptions in family, work, school or social settings. Relationships often suffer because of drug abuse. Some people who abuse drugs also have difficulty performing at work and school.
  
  
• Legal problems. People can be arrested for using drugs. Also, sometimes people commit crimes, such as theft and prostitution, to support drug habits.
  
  
• Financial problems. Spending money on drugs can reduce the amount of money available for other needs.
  
  
• Health issues. Drug use can result in many health problems, such as heart and lung damage. Abusing drugs may cause people to participate in unsafe behaviors, such as having unprotected sex or sharing needles.
  
  
• Death. People can die as a result of taking too much of a drug (overdose) or by engaging in reckless behaviors while under the influence of a drug.

Drug abuse can be found in people of all ages, from children to the elderly. According to a 2004 study conducted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), 19.1 million Americans (7.9 percent of the population aged 12 or older) reported that they had used an illegal drug in the month prior to the study.

A variety of drugs may be abused. According to the 2004 SAMHSA survey, there were:

• 14.6 million marijuana users.
  
  
• 6 million users of prescription drugs taken for nonmedical purposes. Of those, 4.4 million used pain relievers, 1.6 million used tranquilizers, 1.2 million used stimulants and 300,000 used sedatives.
  
  
• 2 million cocaine users, 467,000 of whom used crack cocaine.
  
  
• 929,000 hallucinogen users.
  
  
• 450,000 ecstasy (methylenedioxymethamphetamine) users.
  
  
• 166,000 heroin users.

Alcohol and nicotine are other substances that are commonly abused.