consciousness-altering drug vs psychoactive substance

consciousness-altering drug and psychoactive substance both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
consciousness-altering drug	Yes	No	No	No
psychoactive substance	Yes	No	No	No

As nouns, consciousness-altering drug and psychoactive substance are synonyms defined as:

consciousness-altering drug and psychoactive substance: a drug that can produce mood changes and distorted perceptions

Other synonyms of consciousness-altering drug include mind-altering drug, psychoactive drug.

consciousness-altering drug (noun)	psychoactive substance (noun)
a drug that can produce mood changes and distorted perceptions	a drug that can produce mood changes and distorted perceptions