drugtalk.myfreeforum.org

admin · Posted: Fri Oct 06, 2006 11:57 am Post subject: Consequences of heroin use

Risks to physical health

One of the most obvious risks of taking heroin is that of overdose. This can occur whatever method is used to take the drug, although intravenous injection is most dangerous in this respect as the whole dose is delivered directly into the blood system.
Heroin is a Central Nervous System depressant and when it's taken vital functions such as higher brain activity, breathing and heart rate are inhibited - or slowed down. If a large dose is taken - or the heroin is exceptionally pure - the user may become comatose and the skin feel cold and clammy. Breathing becomes shallow and intermittent and death may occur.
Other physical health risks related to heroin use are associated with the means of taking the drug. Users who inject heroin might often employ contaminated needles or syringes. This can lead to severe blood infection and damage the heart.
In case anyone thinks this is a joke, it's how this writers best friend died. He (my mate Keith) got septicaemia from an unsterile needle. This damaged the valves of his heart and he nearly died shortly after. He had to have operations to put in plastic heart valves and a pacemaker. He lived for a few years after that but then his heart gave out.
That's reality.

Injecting heroin - or any drug - in situations where shared needles are used, perhaps accidently, leaves the users open to infection from the HIV virus that causes AIDS. Hepatitis B or C, both of which are serious infections, can be spread in this way and are common among intravenous heroin users.

Another immediate physical danger associated with heroin use exists if the drug is combined with other substances. Other depressant drugs, such as alcohol, benzodiazepines and barbiturates are particularly dangerous as they are all CNS depressants. As heroin is also a powerfull CNS depressant, the combined effect of mixing these drugs can depress breathing or heart rate to such an extent as to cause respiratory failure or heart failure.

Dependence

Physical and psychological dependence upon heroin is likely to occur, especially if a person uses a lot of the drug or even uses it occasionally over a long period of time. The method of taking heroin makes no difference here - a person who sniffs or smokes heroin can become dependent on the drug just as easily as a person who injects it.

Heroin use can result in a powerful physical addiction.
Coming off the drug can be very difficult because withdrawal symptoms - although lasting for only a few days - are fairly severe. Abstinence can bring on symptoms such as chronic diarrhoea, muscle cramps, vomiting, insomnia, sweating, anxiety, and tremors. The prospect of going through such a painfull withdrawal puts many heroin users off the idea of trying to stop using the drug.
Once the physical withdrawal is over, a craving for the drug may still persist for a long time and relapses are common. Generally speaking, a heroin user who wishes to stop using the drug completely needs a strong support network to help him or her overcome the craving for the drug.

Social consequences

It costs a lot of money to maintain a regular intake of heroin. Many regular users resort to crime of one kind or another to fund their drug use. This has serious implications for our society as the social costs of drug-related crime are enormous. An estimate of the size of the problem was provided in research by the UK Home Office in 1997, which found that 20 percent of all people arrested in Britain were on heroin.

Effect on pregnant women

Researchers estimate that nearly half of the women who are dependent on heroin suffer anaemia, heart disease, diabetes, pneumonia or hepatitis during pregnancy and childbirth. They have more spontaneous abortions, breech deliveries, caesarean sections, premature births and stillbirths.
Infants born to these women often have heroin withdrawal symptoms which may last several weeks or months. Many of these babies die.

Legal consequences

Heroin is a Class A drug. It is illegal to supply or possess it. Penalties are high.
(Drugs similar to heroin, such as morphine, opium, methadone, dipapanone and pethidine are also Class A drugs. Codeine and dihydrocodeine (DF118) are Class B drugs unless they are prepared for injection when they become Class A drugs.)