Hallucinogenic plants have played an important role in religious rites and ceremonies of primitive cultures for thousands of years. Even today they are used by many people throughout the world. What are the actual drugs in these plants and which plants produce them? are they of significant medicinal importance? Did primitive societies abuse them? Can they cause temporary or permanent psychosis? What is their current social use in the Western world? This book discusses such topics as witchcraft, initiation rites, medicine men and the practices of primitive and contemporary societies. With the growing interest in all things "natural" and organic, it is important to know the potential dangers and medicinal uses of these various plants.

The encyclopedia of psychoactive drugs answers the questions that young people are likely to ask about drugs, as well as those they might not think to ask, but should. Topics include: what it means to be intoxicated; how drugs affect mood; why people take drugs; who takes them; when they take them; and how much they take. They will learn what happens to a drug when it enters the body. They will learn what it means to get "hooked" and how it happens. They will learn how drugs affect their driving, their school work, and those around them--their peers, their family, their friends and their employers. They will learn what the signs are that indicate that a friend or a family member may have a drug problem and how to identify four stages leading from drug use to drug abuse.