If you ask almost anyone if they know what a hard drug is, they’ll nod enthusiastically. Ask them to define a  however and the nodding might stop. According to most, hard drugs are more toxic, more dangerous, more addictive, more potent,Ìý. But it turns out that hardness is a measure of a drug’s potential for dependence, and its harm to the user. This fits with the Ìý´Ç´ÚÌýdrugs like ,ÌýÌý´Ç°ùÌý, which cause physical dependence and are thus hard drugs, but not so much with our ideas of ,ÌýÌý´Ç°ùÌý, which also cause physical dependence and are thus, hard drugs. This also means that hallucinogens like  or ‘’, as well as Ìý²¹²Ô»åÌý are soft drugs, due to their lack of dependence building. ‘Soft’ as a descriptor for a drug has never been favoured, for fear that it minimized the risks inherent with any drug, but now hard and softness in relation to drugs has a connotation completely outside its definition that is causing scientists to turn away from these terms.Â
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