In elementary school, we had a workbook with black and white photos on the opening pages. To the left there was a photo of a brain with a caption “This is your brain” and to the right a photo of a fried egg in a pan, sunny side up with the caption “This is your brain on drugs.”
I think my teacher explained it, but when when I first saw it I was baffled. It was a stark ad, but probably one intended for a more mature audience that understood the nuances. I guess I was more literal at that age, and fried in this context was new to me. I remember thinking along the lines of how does photo A (a brain) morph into photo B (an egg).
As a frum student I honestly didn’t feel it was directed at me, and none of my classmates as far as I know ever did drugs. B”H for my sheltered upbringing, which although perhaps needs some slight tweaking nowadays when some kids have more exposure, it has worked well in my days of yore…
The ad was likely part of Nancy Reagan’s campaign as well.