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Students of psychology Professor Edwin Bergen distributed pamphlets about drug and alcohol treatment centers at HealthFest April 4 in Candler Physical Education Center.
Bergen is the program coordinator for drug and alcohol abuse counseling.
Bergen said students asked questions about the program, ways to tell if one is addicted, how treatment centers are funded and which drugs are the most dangerous.
A drug kit was set on the table to show students the different types of drugs individuals may consume and become addicted to. The drug kit contained drugs such as hallucinogens, brown heroin, marijuana, marinol, tobacco, inhalants, steroids, oxycodine, oxycontin and Vicodin (also known as hydrocodone) and methadone.
Engineering freshman Angel Moreno said he stopped by to view the drug kit because he was amazed by the different drugs.
DeAnna Melendez, chemical dependency counselor at the Center for Health Care Services, said brown heroin is the most dangerous drug because it is affordable and available on the streets. The center services include individual, family and group counseling, screenings, assessments, medical evaluations and physicals, methadone dispensing, lab work and urinalysis and case management.
The center is at 3031 Interstate Highway 10 West at Summit.
Brown heroin is highly abused and individuals who consume the drug have a tendency to mix it with other drugs, Melendez said.
Methadone is another powerful drug that is a narcotic in the same class as heroin, she said.
"Methadone is a very controversial treatment in the field," Melendez said.
According to the information provided by the Center for Health Care Services of the substance abuse program, methadone, formerly known as dolophine, is a psychoactive drug, meaning it can affect the mind or behavior. Melendez said the drug is used to relieve chronic pain in cancer patients; however, the drug is also used as a maintenance drug to control withdrawal symptoms that have an opium addiction.
For more information, call Bergen at 733-2608.
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