Dangers of Heroin

Heroin is processed from morphine, a naturally occurring substance taken from the seedpod of the Asian poppy plant.  Heroin is the most widely abused and rapidly acting drug in the United States. Heroin appears as a white or brown powder substance with street names such as “smack” “H” “skag” and “junk.”  Heroin can be injected, smoked or snorted.  Heroin is highly addictive and can result in serious withdrawal symptoms when abused.  Due to the fact that heroin is usually cut with a number of unknown additives, the purity of the drug is never known to the buyer. 

Heroin users report having a feeling of euphoria soon after a single dose of heroin which may last only a few hours. Following this initial “euphoria” the heroin user goes “on the nod” whereby they report feeling drowsy and semi-conscious.  Mental functioning of the user becomes clouded as the substance acts as a depressant on the central nervous system.

Heroin abuse is associated with several serious health conditions such as fatal overdose, spontaneous abortion, and collapsed veins.  For those individuals who choose to inject the substance, there is also an increased risk of contracting HIV, hepatitis or other related infectious diseases.  Approximately 70-80% of all new reported cases of Hepatitis C each year can be directly linked to injection drug use. Chronic users may develop collapsed veins, infection of the heart lining and valves, abscesses, cellulitis, and liver disease. Pulmonary complications, including various types of pneumonia, may result from the poor health condition of the user as well due to the effect that heroin has on the body’s respiratory system.

Street heroin may have additives that do not readily dissolve and may result in a clog in the abuser’s blood vessels that lead to the lungs, liver, kidneys or brain.  This clog may cause an infection or death in some parts of the cells in these vital organs.

Heroin abuse during pregnancy has been linked to low birth weight in babies, which may cause serious developmental delays.

As with other illegal substances, with regular use of heroin, tolerance develops.  With regular use, over time, the body will become addicted to the substance and the abuser will find that they need more and more heroin to reach their high.  As the abuser uses more of the drug, the body will undergo withdrawal when the user stops using.  Withdrawal may occur within a few hours for regular heroin abusers.  Withdrawal symptoms may include restlessness, bone pain, muscle pain, insomnia, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, cold flashes and other symptoms.  Major withdrawal symptoms start within 48-72 hours after the last administration and last about a week.  Sudden withdrawal by heavy heroin users may even be fatal, although heroin withdrawal is considered by most addiction experts to be less dangerous than alcohol or barbiturate withdrawal.

There is a broad range of treatment options for those individuals suffering from heroin addiction.  Most treatment methods usually involve medical treatment in the form of medication, as well as drug rehab and behavioral therapy.  Behavioral therapy may include a reward system for those users who do not use the drug during treatment.  Behavioral therapy will also most likely include treatments focusing on changing the drug-using behavior.

 

 

Drug Specific Information

Website Design & Hosting