An incredible controversial drug, heroin has an interesting history, one that has taken thousands of years, and still is playing it’s part in our worlds history. It’s been an instigator of a wars (war on drugs), and has destroyed many lives. Hopefully after reading this blog, you’ll have a better idea on what heroin was, is, and does.
Opium poppies were first harvested in lower Mesopotamia as far back as 3400 BC. It was referred to as the Hul Gil, or the “joy plant”. The skill of poppy cultivation would be passed along to the Assyrians, who would pass it to the Babylonians, who then passed it onto the Egyptians. In 1300BC in the capitol of Thebes, the opium trade grew until; the drug was traded across the Mediterranean Sea into Greece, Carthage, and Europe.
Hippocrates, “the father of medicine”, saw usefulness in its ability as a styptic for internal disease and the ability to treat diseases of woman and epidemics.As time passed, opium actually disappeared from European records for a few hundred years; it wasn’t until the 1300’s that opium became a taboo subject for people of knowledge during the Holy Inquisition. This was because anything from the east was seen as linked to the Devil.
It wasn’t until the 19th century that the chemical analysis for opium was discovered, this being two alkaloids, codeine and morphine. Heroin or, Diacetylmorphine, was first synthesized by C. R. Alder Wright in 1874 who was working for St. Mary’s Hospital. He did this by combining different acids with Morphine.
He boiled anhydrous morphine alkaloid with acetic anhydride for several hours and produced a more potent, acetylated form of morphine
Bayer ,better know as the makers of Aspirin, started producing Diamorphine, and sold it around the world for prescription purposes, that was labeled non addictive substitute for morphine(they actually went as far as saying that it cures morphine addiction) and a cough suppressant. Bayer ended up calling this miracle product Heroine, the name comes from the German word “heroisch” and was chosen because of the heroic feeling it gave you. Funnily enough, this new product was found to rapidly metabolize into morphine when processed in the body, making it a quicker acting form of morphine. This was incredible embarrassing for the company and become a historical blunder.
Heroin is now used as a pain killer, and a recreational drug. The chance for addiction and abuse is extremely high with chronic use being associated with a medium physical dependence, and a high psychological dependence.
Currently heroine is cultivated from the poppy plant, being produced in Afghanistan, Thailand, and other parts of South East Asia; Afghanistan being the biggest producer with 87% of the worlds heroine supply. The peak of production in Afghanistan was in 1999, when 350 square miles. (This is roughly 4 times the size of the city of Vancouver) This was changed in 2001 when the Taliban outlawed poppy cultivation which cut production by 94%. In 2001 only 30 square miles were used for poppy cultivation. A year later British and American troops removed the Taliban from power; people leapt at this chance, increasing poppy production to 285 square miles. In current times, cultivation of poppies has exploded even further, reaching an all-time high in 2006, war seemingly being the catalyst for this.
Currently heroine is illegal in most countries, some such as, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand giving the death penalty for trafficking in heroin, this can include people from other countries that the death penalty doesn’t apply.
Heroin, or diacetylmorphine, is a semi-synthetic opioid drug, it’s synthesized from morphine which is derived from opium poppies. The white crytalized form is known as hydrochloride salt diacetylmorphine hydrochloride.
When used orally, heroin goes through first-pass metabolism, this means that concentration of the drug gets greatly reduced; However, when it is injected, it avoids this process and easily moves past the blood brain barrier, due to the presence of acetyl groups, which make it more lipid-soluable then even morphine. Once in the brain heroin gets deacetylated into 6-monoacetylmorphine (6-MAM) and morphine which bind to μ-opioid receptors
The short term affects of heroin happen quickly, and last for a few hours. The user will feel euphoric, users report that they feel warm and flushed. After the effects of the euphoria wear off, users go “on the nod,” an almost sleepwalking state of mind. Users are unable to think properly due to the depression of the central nervous system. Some side effects include slurred speech, vomiting, impaired night vision, droopy eyelids, and constipation/ anal leakage.
Using the name diamorphine, heroin is prescribed in certain places, such as the United Kingdom, where its used as an analgesic. Usually it’s administered subcutaneously, intramuscular, intrathecal, or intravenously In other countries usually strong opiates or morphine are used instead.
Between 1990 and 2000 heroin abuse has risen from 182 to 1067 among 12-17 years old, and from 4654 cases to 18400 with 18-25 year old. (Drug Abuse Warning Network, 2002)
At substance abuse centers, Heroin admissions has increased 44 percent between 1992 and 2000 (Drug and Alcohol Services Information System[DASIS], 2003).
Half of repeated abusers of heroin will become addicts. (Doweiko, 2005)
Most persons who abuse heroin show signs of dysfunctionality at an earlier age (Ray & Ksir, 2004).
Heroin abuse can have a physiological component to it, where heroin abuse can be both acute and chronic.
Abusing Heroin has shown to be lethal. Perhaps the most dangerous effect being overdosing following a period of reduced use. (Warner-Smith, Darke, Lynskey, & Hall, 2001).
Conditional tolerance is a phenomenon where state dependence happens; this means that administering the same dose of heroin in a new environment will cause reduced tolerance and as a consequence a greater chance of OD. (NIDA, 2002).
Since Heroin is a intravenous (IV) drug, users may share needles. Almost a third of all people infected with HIV and AIDS in North America are IV drug users.
Steriotypical Heroin Users, those being from urban settings, people that are disadvantaged, or unemployed used to dominate the percentage of heroin users, lately that has changed and the amount of middle class and rural users has grown. Heroin abuse isn’t limited to lower income users anymore and is a drug with no preference. (Epstein & Gfroerer, 2003).
Heroin also seems to effect short and long term memory, causes Decreased attention spans, poorer information processing ability, and lower critical thinking skills, in comparison to non heroin users using cohort measurements. (Darke, Sims, McDonald, & Wickes, 2000).
A person who is addicted to heroin could possible inject the drug every three to four hours for 365 days a year; This would total 1300 injections. This can accumulate to incredible high cost even though heroin is relatively cheap. This Is why heroin user with no other means of getting disposable income resort to crime to pay for there addiction. (Hammersley & Morrison, 1987).
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