Posts Tagged ‘Natural Flora’
Worries With Drugs
The use of chemical substances to enhance our lives is a notion that brings up taboo ideas of drug use. But using the properties of items that grow around us is a recurring feature of everyday living. Herbal chemicals such as liquid zeolite, ellagic acid, fish oil and zinc are often used to enhance different aspects of our lives and improve our well being. This use of herbs and natural flora to help us can also be viewed in the indigenous cultures of the Australian and Canadian Aborigines, Native Americans, as well as African cultures. Nowadays, however, the notion of taking certain chemicals has grown to be taboo due to the effects on the brain they are proven to have. Can there be advantages to using these drugs?
Many additives are added to drinks and foods for their basically drug-like qualities. The use of taurine in energy drinks, for instance, is a well known chemical additive created to enhance the alertness and energy levels of the drinker. While such drinks are quite legal, they’re not suitable for young people or pregnant women, and doctors warn against having a large amount of these kinds of liquids, if at all.
Along with the plant-based chemicals in the drinks, they are also of course high in caffeine. This is an additive which has become incredibly commonplace. The fact is, of course, that drinking a large amount of coffee or energy drinks will create a reaction in the body that is highly similar to that given by amphetimenes or known toxic chemicals. The difference, it seems, lies in the view our society has of such chemicals.
This taboo has not always been the case, though. While hallucinogenics are now seen as some of the most dangerous chemicals it is possible to take, the properties of natural drugs such as ayuhuasca and psilocybin mushrooms was often used in the shamanic rituals of indigenous peoples.
The idea of starting use of hallucinogenic drugs to receive the wisdom held by indigenous peoples is a tempting one. But it has to be remembered that psychedelics were used by indigenous peoples as part of a larger relationship with nature, these were “local plants” just as creatures were local food and day- to -day life was a local big screen entertainment system. How can the life-changing capabilities of psychedelics be totally realized within such an unnatural environment as that which we live in, beyond the momentary high?
The answer is that with any substance, it cannot be believed that drugs will be the complete answer. It’s only through a deeper understanding of ourselves and our relationship with the Earth that we can begin to look into deeper questions of what it is to be human, and how we can best use our limited time on this planet. The negative effects of all drugs can be easily viewed in those who regularly take them, and it’s vital to remember the dangers every kind of drug has.