Heroin << HEHR oh ihn >> is a drug made from morphine, which comes from the natural substance opium. Like morphine, heroin relieves pain and brings sleep. But heroin is stronger and more addictive than morphine. United States laws ban the manufacture, importation, and use of heroin, but many people obtain it illegally. Heroin has several nicknames, including “H,” “horse,” and “smack.”
Users take heroin by eating it, by snorting (sniffing) it, by skin popping (injecting it under the skin), by muscling (injecting it into a muscle), or by mainlining (injecting it into a vein). Heroin provides a feeling of joy and relief. Users also experience mood swings, sweating, slowed breathing, and lack of energy. Someone who takes too much heroin may stop breathing and die.
Repeated heroin use leads to physical and psychological dependence on the drug. When someone who is dependent on heroin stops taking the drug, they may suffer withdrawal. Withdrawal symptoms include body aches, diarrhea, muscle cramps, and nausea. The intensity of these symptoms peaks in 2 to 3 days and then gradually decreases over 7 to 10 days.
Heroin addiction creates other serious health problems for individuals. People often use unsterile needles to inject heroin. Contaminated needles can transmit AIDS, hepatitis, or skin infections. Babies born to mothers addicted to heroin are physically dependent on the drug and must undergo withdrawal treatment.
In addition, heroin addiction contributes to widespread social problems. Many people turn to crime—particularly theft or prostitution—to get money to buy heroin.
Heroin addiction is a chronic brain illness that can be effectively treated. Methadone and buprenorphine are medications that, when used as part of a carefully planned treatment, stabilize the patient, relieve the patient’s craving and withdrawal symptoms, and allow the patient to engage in a recovery program.
In the 1990’s, an opioid-use epidemic started in the United States after pharmaceutical companies began to heavily promote the use of prescription opioids. Opioids are a group of drugs that include heroin. Many people became addicted to using legal opioids, such as oxycodone. When they could not legally obtain such drugs, they began using heroin instead. Heroin became a leading cause of drug overdoses during the 2010’s. However, by the late 2010’s, more overdose deaths were caused by synthetic (artificially manufactured) opioids than by heroin. See Opioid (The opioid use epidemic).
See also Drug misuse; Fentanyl; Morphine.
