Cocaine looks like a white crystalline powder. It is often sold in aluminum foil, plastic/paper packets, or small vials. The cocaine that is distributed on the street in two main forms: powder cocaine and crack cocaine. Crack is cocaine hydrochloride that has been processed with ammonia or sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) and water into a freebase cocaine — chips, chunks, or rocks. On the illicit market, crack is sold in small, inexpensive dosage units. When posed the question, “Who’s using heroin?” the answer may not be what one would expect. An epidemic of heroin use over the past five years crosses generational, socioeconomic and geographic boundaries to plague all areas of American culture. Heroin, once a drug primarily associated with aging inner-city addicts, has become popular among suburban and rural populations, and is used by adults and adolescents. A pregnant woman who uses heroin should not attempt to suddenly stop taking the drug. This can put her baby at increased risk of death. She should consult a health care provider or drug treatment center about treatment with a drug called methadone. Although infants born to mothers taking methadone also have withdrawal symptoms, they can be safely treated in the nursery and generally do better than babies born to women who continue to use heroin. Ecstasy can interfere with its own metabolism (breakdown within the body); therefore, potentially harmful levels can be reached by repeated ecstasy administration within short periods of time. | 
