Other Drugs Sometimes Alleged To Be Gateway Drugs
Due to the past decade's increase in prescription drug abuse, especially narcotic painkillers such as Vicodin and OxyContin, such substances have also been recently labeled as gateway drugs. In the US, such substances appear to be more common than cannabis as the first "illicit" drug tried, and are relatively easy to obtain by adolescents. Due to the similarity between narcotics, those who become addicted to prescription painkillers sometimes move on to heroin since the latter can actually be a cheaper habit to support. In addition, a study on mice found that using oxycodone during adolescence may sensitize the brain's reward system, possibly predisposing to later addiction.
Caffeine has also been alleged by some to be a gateway drug. Being the most widely consumed psychoactive substance in the world, it is often the first one that people use, preceding even alcohol or tobacco if the latter two are used. However, the hypothesis of caffeine being a gateway drug has not been very well studied, and thus there is little to no evidence either way on this question.
Read more about this topic: Steppingstone Theory
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