9781422282526

CHAPTER ONE

WHAT ARE OTC DRUGS?

A shifty young man paces in a dingy alley. In his hand, he has 20 dollars that he stole from an elderly neighbor. He’s waiting impatiently for his dealer to arrive, but he’s worried the cops may show up first. . . . This is the stereotypical image of a drug user. It’s not totally wrong— those people do exist. But consider these images, too: • A mother of three buys another bottle of cough syrup; she’s not sure why the medicine keeps disappearing from the medicine cabinet. • A young wrestler buys a bottle of dietary supplements off the Internet, hoping against hope that they will help him finally make varsity this year. • A cheerleader swallows yet another handful of diet pills, even though anyone can see she’s dangerously underweight already. • A lonesome kid shoplifts yet another whipped cream can from the corner store. His mom is working the third shift tonight, so she’ll never know what he’s up to.

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