Cocaine side effects: How the party drug can impact your body

Experts have revealed the devastating impacts of cocaine use on a person’s health.

Regular cocaine use could give you the heart of a 60-year-old by the time you’re in your 30s.

That was a telling finding from a report on the impact of cocaine on the cardiac health of “social users from a well-off part of Sydney”.

But cocaine, the drug of choice for many across Australia, also tortures your kidneys, can lead to psychosis, holes in the lining of your nose, sexual problems and even strokes.

“In the acute phase of use, overdosing on cocaine is obviously not good on the kidneys, but regular use can even cause kidney failure,” Dr Danielle McMullen, president of the Australian Medical Association, told Powder Keg.

“The reason people take cocaine is because they are seeking its effects of being more alert and energetic, but the downside is it can cause anxiety, paranoia, agitation and insomnia.

“Most commonly we tend to see people snorting cocaine and long term use can damage the skin inside the nose, and leave some pretty gory holes on the nasal septum.”

But it’s not only the toll cocaine takes on your body that concerns Dr McMullen.

Because it is largely used by middle and upper-class members of society, who are educated and have stable jobs, there is a feeling of “invincibility” in cocaine as opposed to drugs like “ice” – something that she said simply isn’t true.

“Cocaine is expensive, so we see lots of people who hold a steady job (use it),” Dr McMullen said.

“People who otherwise see themselves as successful professional people, they feel like they are in control of their drug use, but their use often escalates.

“From a medical perspective we often see that invincibility come unravelled. Harm creeps up on them.”

Cocaine use affects your heart, kidneys and brain.

A 2014 report backed by Heart Research Australia investigated not only the use of cocaine, but also the health differences between those who do and don’t use it.

As Professor Gemma Figtree, one of the authors of the report, said: “You couldn’t think of a better drug than cocaine to cause heart attacks”.

“But ultimately cocaine can do a whole collection of things that severely impact your heart,” Prof Figtree said.

“It can cause your blood to clot, can increase blood vessel inflammation, can lead to nasty rhythms and thickening of the heart wall. These are things we’d normally see in older patients and are associated with risk of premature cardiac death.”

By deliberately looking at “young and employed people who generally snort cocaine on a recreational basis” and not just addicts, the study provided an accurate grasp of most of Australia’s cocaine users.

The study also found that cocaine use often goes hand-in-hand with alcohol abuse, with 18 drinks the weekly standard alcohol consumption of a cocaine user.

Powder keg is a groundbreaking investigation into the nation’s cocaine fixation.

And the long held narrative that cocaine is a drug reserved for the toilet stalls of pubs or nightclubs is quickly changing.

The COVID-19 pandemic did little to slow the use or demand for cocaine.

A combination of pubs, bars and restaurants being closed, and the simplicity with which it can now be ordered – often via text message – saw cocaine make its way more readily into Australian homes.

“During COVID-19 people who just used to use when out at a club were getting it delivered to home,” Dr McMullen said.

“So we are seeing increasing patterns of people using at home and a change in pattern of use that concerns us.”